One more patient in Kerala turns Nipah positive, active cases rise to three
Two people died in Kerala due to Nipah virus
Updated: Sep 14th, 2023
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| img: IANS |
Updated on Sept 14 8.30 a.m.
A 24-year-old health professional at Kozhikode tested positive for Nipah on the night of Sept 13, taking the total number of active cases to three, Kerala health minister Veena George said.
All the three cases are at Kozhikode.
Updated on Sept 13, 8.50 a.m.
Blood samples of two more people, including a nine-year-old boy, from Kerala's Kozhikode district have been detected positive for Nipah virus infection, state Health Minister Veena George said on the night of Sept 12.
Of seven blood samples so far sent for testing, three have tested positive- two are undergoing treatment while one died on Sept 11. Another person, who came in contact with one of the infected persons, died on Aug 30 and it is presumed that he too might have died of Nipah.
People who came in contact have been indentified
The health authorities have identified 168 people, including 127 health professionals, who came in contact with the infected persons and have asked everyone in the district to wear masks.
"Those who tested positive include a nine-year-old boy and his uncle. The blood sample of the boy's father, a 40-year-old man who passed away last night, had also tested positive. There is no need to worry as things are all under control and everything is going forward according to the protocols," said George, who is in Kozhikode since the morning of Sept 12 to oversee the arrangements.
It was on the morning of Sept 12 that the sample of a person, who died at Kozhikode following fever and breathlessness on Sept 11, first tested positive for the Nipah virus.
A team of top officials from Delhi reach Kozhikode
A central team of top officials from Delhi have been asked to reach Kozhikode following the detection of the infection in the district.
The 40-year-old person, who turned positive for the Nipah virus, had come in contact with a relative last month. His relative turned feverish on Aug 22 and was admitted to a hospital near Kozhikode on Aug 25, but he died on Aug 30.
Though his blood sample was not sent for examination, it is being presumed that he too might have died of Nipah.
Kerala and Nipah virus
The present case has been reported about 15 km from where the initial Nipah virus outbreak in southern India was first identified in Kozhikode in May 2018 and then again in 2021.
Nipah virus infection is basically a zoonotic disease and can be transmitted from animals to humans, besides, it can spread through contaminated food or through contact.
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