The Nipah virus claimed the life of a 14-year-old boy from Kerala’s Malappuram district on July 21. The resurgence of the disease, which often spreads from fruit bats to other animals and human beings, has prompted the government to impose containment measures in at least two panchayats in the district.
Kerala Health Minister Veena George said that the teenager died at the Government Medical College Hospital, Kozhikode, while under intense medical care. She attributed the cause of death to a massive cardiac arrest.
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The Pune-based National Institute of Virology confirmed that the teenager had succumbed to a Nipah virus infection. A previous Nipah outbreak in Malappuram and Kozhikode had claimed 17 lives in 2018.
‘No need to panic’
At least three of the boy’s relatives are under surveillance at the hospital, and four others who interacted with him are under observation at the Manjeri Government Medical College Hospital in Malappuram, Ms. George said.
She said that those in the high-risk contacted category did not show any symptoms of a Nipah infection. At least seven samples have tested negative. The State Health Minister counselled the public against panic and said that the situation was under control.
Too late
Doctors had injected the boy with a monoclonal antibody procured from Australia by the Indian Council of Medical Research, but Ms. George noted that the injection is meant to be administered within five days of the patient showing signs of infection. “In the teenager’s case, the deadline for the infusion of antibodies had passed. Still, the medical board authorised the administration as a desperate life-saving measure,” she added.
The teenager had reported sick after school on July 10 after which his parents admitted him to a private hospital. However, as the boy’s condition worsened, his relatives belatedly shifted him to MCH, Kozhikode. The doctors said that, by then, encephalitis had already set in. The body will now be interred as per the Nipah protocol in the boy’s village.
Containment measures
The government has stepped up containment measures in Malappuram, with District Collector V.R. Vinod declaring masks and social distancing mandatory till further notice.
He has closed educational institutions in Pandikkad and Anakkayam panchayats and cinema theatres will also remain shut. Mr. Vinod asked people to avoid social gatherings. Shops within the containment zones must open at 10 a.m. and close at 5 p.m.
District Medical Officer R. Renuka warned people against self-treatment. She advised them to seek medical attention immediately if they develop fever symptoms and also counselled the public not to consume partly-eaten fruit leftovers, including those dropped by bats, birds, or animals.
The Union government will deploy a multi-member joint outbreak response team in Malappuram to support the State. The team will help identify epidemiological linkages and provide technical assistance.
