Boy, 14, dies from brain-swelling Nipah virus as officials issue alert over ‘priority pathogen with pandemic potential’
A 14-YEAR-OLD boy has died from a brain-swelling bat virus that has previously been dubbed the ‘next pandemic threat’.
Sixty more people in Kerela, India, are now being classed as “high risk” after potentially coming into contact with the Nipah virus.
The boy went into cardiac arrest in Kerala, India after contracting the bug which can cause a lethal, brain-swelling fever.
Nipah is a zoonotic virus transmitted from animals like fruit bats and pigs to humans.
Listed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a “priority pathogen” with pandemic potential, it can rapidly attack the respiratory and central nervous systems.
In a statement on Saturday, Kerala health minister Veena George said the government has issued orders to identify and isolate affected people.
Dr Anoop Kumar, director of critical care medicine at Aster MIMS Hospital in Calicut, said one positive case of Nipah had been diagnosed in a schoolboy and people in close contact with him were being watched.
“There is a minimum chance of an outbreak of Nipah virus at this stage,” he said, adding that the situation would be monitored for the next seven to 10 days.
There are 214 people on the contact list of the boy, the statement said.
Among them, 60 are in the high-risk category – which means they are more at risk of getting seriously ill if they contract the bug, compared to most.
Family members of the affected patient were kept at a local hospital for observation and others who might be at risk were asked to isolate at home.
DEADLIER THAN COVID
The bug – which inspired the blockbuster film Contagion about a global pandemic – has a fatality rate up to 75 per cent.
Of those who survive it, around 20 per cent are left with long-term neurological conditions, including personality changes or seizure disorders.
For comparison, estimates based on the John Hopkins University dashboard suggest the fatality rate of Covid is just over one per cent.
Scientists previously told The Sun that Nipah could “absolutely be the cause of a new pandemic”.
The US deems the virus a Category C bioterrorism threat, as it “could be engineered for mass dissemination in the future”.
There is no medicine or vaccine available to treat Nipah.
The virus predominantly affects Bangladesh, where outbreaks occur almost every year.
Parts of Kerala, in Southern India, are said to be the most at-risk globally for the virus.
An investigation published by Reuters last year, external found that Kerala, which is a tropical state and is witnessing rapid urbanisation and rapid tree loss, created “ideal conditions for a virus like Nipah to emerge”.
Experts say that due to habitat loss, animals are living in closer proximity to humans and this helps the virus jump from animals to humans.
The state government recently announced that it was creating an action plan to prevent a Nipah outbreak.
Last year, authorities in Kerala state closed schools and offices after confirming five cases.
What is Nipah virus?
Nipah is a serious, and sometimes deadly, viral disease
It’s carried by fruit bats which can be passed onto people.
Some patients present no symptoms while others present with severe inflammation of the brain.
Symptoms include fever, and headache followed by drowsiness and mental confusion.
About half of patients with neurological symptoms also experienced respiratory difficulty.
How it spreads
- Nipah virus can be transmitted from bats to humans through contact with infected bat secretions – for example by consuming raw date palm sap
- The virus can also spread to domestic animals, notably pigs, and cause disease in these populations
- NiV can also be transmitted through close contact with infected patients
How to prevent it
- Avoid contact with infected bats, pigs and raw food products which may have been contaminated
How it is treated
Treatment is currently limited to supportive care.
A vaccine has been developed to protect horses and this holds promise for future henipavirus protection for humans
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention