A 14-year-old boy has died in India after contracting Nipah virus – which has no known cure or vaccine to prevent it.
The Nipah virus originates from fruit bats and animals such as pigs, and can cause a lethal, brain-swelling fever. The teenager died after suffering from a cardiac arrest.
The incident happened in India’s southern state of Kerala, with officials now monitoring the potential spread of the virus.
At least 60 people have since been classed as ‘high risk’ after fears that they came into contact with the boy.
Nipah is classified as a priority pathogen by the World Health Organization (WHO) because of its potential to trigger an epidemic.
As it is a relatively new virus, there is still no vaccine to prevent the infection and no treatment to cure it.
Nipah virus is carried by some Asian fruit bats and animals such as pigs, and was first discovered in 1999.
It is considered one of the most dangerous pathogens circulating in the wild, and is responsible for past outbreaks in Bangladesh and Malaysia.
More than 25 years on, there is still no vaccine to prevent an infection and no treatment to cure it.
In humans, the virus presents in multiple ways from, no symptoms to acute respiratory infection and fatal encephalitis (swollen brain).
According to WHO, the case fatality rate is estimated at 40% to 75%.
This can vary by outbreak depending on local capabilities for epidemiological surveillance and clinical management.
The virus can be transmitted to humans from animals, or contaminated foods and can also be transmitted directly from human-to-human.
‘The infected boy died on Sunday after a cardiac arrest,’ Veena George, the state health minister told local TV reporters, speaking in the Malayalam language.
In a statement on Saturday, she said the government has issued orders to set up 25 committees to identify and isolate affected people.
The state government said it is working to trace any affected people to contain the spread of the virus.
Nipah has been linked to the deaths of dozens of people in Kerala since its first appearance in the state in 2018.
Dr Anoop Kumar, director of critical care medicine at Aster MIMS Hospital in Calicut, stressed that the situation would be monitored for the next seven to 10 days.
He added: ‘There is a minimum chance of an outbreak of Nipah virus at this stage.’
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