Nipah Virus Suspected After 2 'Unnatural' Deaths In Kerala's Kozhikode, Samples Sent For Testing

State Health Minister Veena George said the alert has been sounded in the district following two deaths at a private hospital in Kozhikode.

Health official in PPE standing outside a hospital in Kozhikode. ( Image Source :Representational Image/Getty )

Following the “unnatural” deaths of two people suspected to be caused by Nipah virus infection, the Kerala Health Department sounded a health alert in Kozhikode district on Monday. According to a PTI report, State Health Minister Veena George held a high-level meeting and reviewed the situation. A private hospital reported the two “unnatural” deaths had occurred after the people had suffered a fever, and it is suspected that these were due to the Nipah virus. One of the relatives of a deceased has also been admitted to the intensive care unit.

According to The Times Of India, district medical authorities said that the first suspected death was of a 49-year-old man which occurred on August 30. The second suspected death of a 40-year-old man took place on Monday. The two had suffered fever and pneumonia-like symptoms. The health authorities have sent the samples from the deceased for testing.

Surveillance For More Nipah Virus Cases

The health authorities reportedly stated that they have conducted a fever surveillance in the area where the first case was reported, which is at a distance of about 20 kilometres from the house of the deceased, as per TOI.

The samples taken from the deceased and their families have been sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune. 

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in a Facebook post said the state government was taking the deaths very seriously and that the health department had issued an alert in the district over the suspicion that the Nipah virus had caused the deaths. He further said there was no need to worry and that those in close contact with the deceased were under treatment.

State Health Minister Veena George told the media the government was taking all precautionary steps in case the results showed the presence of the Nipah virus. She said that contact tracing has begun to identify high-risk contacts and that precautionary steps based on the suspicion that the death may be due to the Nipah virus have been taken.

Past Outbreaks Of Nipah Virus

The first Nipah virus (NiV) outbreak in south India was reported from Kozhikode on May 19, 2018. Around 17 lives were lost in the first outbreak which included a nurse, who had treated one of the patients. Deaths due to Nipah virus infection were reported in Kozhikode district in 2018 and 2021. In 2021, a 12-year-old boy lost his life to the virus which was the only case reported.

Nipah virus infection is a zoonotic illness, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). It is transmitted to people from animals and can also be transmitted through contaminated food or directly from person-to-person. Infected people can suffer a range of illnesses, from asymptomatic (subclinical) infection to acute respiratory illness and fatal encephalitis. There is a mortality rate of about 70 percent and so far there is no vaccine for the virus.