Kochi: Authorities in Kerala, southern India, are implementing preventive measures following the death of a 14-year-old boy from the Nipah virus and the identification of 60 individuals in the high-risk category, the state’s health minister announced on Sunday.
Kerala is among the regions most vulnerable to outbreaks of the Nipah virus globally, as highlighted by a Reuters investigation last year. Nipah, which is transmitted from fruit bats and animals such as pigs, can cause a severe, brain-swelling fever in humans. It is classified as a priority pathogen by the World Health Organization (WHO) due to its potential to trigger an epidemic. There is currently no vaccine or specific treatment for the virus.
“The infected boy died on Sunday after a cardiac arrest,” Veena George, the state health minister, told local TV reporters in Malayalam.
On Saturday, George stated that the government has established 25 committees to identify and isolate affected individuals as part of its Nipah control efforts. Dr. Anoop Kumar, Director of Critical Care Medicine at Aster MIMS Hospital in Calicut, confirmed a positive case of Nipah in a school-aged boy, and those who had come into contact with him are being monitored. “There is a minimum chance of an outbreak of Nipah virus at this stage,” he said, adding that the situation will be observed over the next 7-10 days.
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The primary contact list includes 214 individuals, with 60 classified as high-risk. Isolation wards have been set up in health institutions to treat patients. Family members of the affected patient are under observation at a local hospital following the confirmation of a Nipah case in Malappuram, approximately 350 km (220 miles) from Kerala’s capital, Thiruvananthapuram. Others who might be at risk have been advised to isolate at home.
The state government is actively working to trace and contain the spread of the virus. Nipah has been responsible for numerous deaths in Kerala since its first appearance in the state in 2018.
