A month after the Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala, Health Minister Veena George on Wednesday informed that tests conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on bats from neighbouring Wayanad district have turned out positive. Interacting with the media, George as per IANS said that the bat samples from Sulthan Bathery and Manathavady districts in Wayanad district tested positive for the virus.
"The need of the hour is that alert health professionals should leave nothing to chance when they engage in the routine work of examining patients. There should be a cautious approach," she said.
The Health Minister advised people to not have fruits bitten by animals or birds.
She said that studies and observations are also being made about the presence of Nipah in other districts.
Last month, six patients tested positive for Nipah virus in Kozhikode district. Of the six persons, two died due to the severity of the infection. However, four others including a nine-year-old boy recovered from Nipah virus.
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Initially, the state first identified the index case in September. A man who died on August 30 while exhibiting Nipah symptoms. His nine-year-old son and brother-in-law who were also admitted to the hospital with similar symptoms were also tested and found to be infected with the virus.
Two others including a healthcare worker who came in contact with the Nipah patients contracted the infection at the hospital. On September 11, the state recorded a second fatality due to Nipah. The patient had also been in contact with the index case.
After over 15 days, the four patients including the four-year-old boy who was receiving treatment for the virus tested double negative. a
Nipah virus is a zoonotic virus that was discovered in 1999 after an outbreak of disease from the pathogen occurred in pigs and people in Malaysia and Singapore.