Nipah virus: Kerala records 5th confirmed case in 24 year-old health worker

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Nipah Virus cases in Kerala: The southern state of Kerala has recorded its fifth case of Nipah virus in a 24 year old health care worker. The health worker employed at a private hospital in Kozhikode has been confirmed with Nipah virus infection after his samples turned positive, a statement from Kerala Health Minister Veena George said. The Kerala state government has also amped up efforts to save a nine-year old boy suffering from the deadly infection by ordering the only anti-viral treatment available.

The government has ordered monoclonal antibody from ICMR to treat the child. It is the only available anti-viral treatment for Nipah virus infection, though it has not been clinically proven yet. Kerala Health minister Veena George also said the 9 year-old boy is on ventilator support at a hospital in Kozhikode, and his condition remains critical.

Further, in its efforts to contain the spread of the fatal Nipah virus, the Kerala government on Wednesday ordered to shut all educational institutions in Kozhikode and other containment zones. The virus strain seen in the state was the Bangladesh variant that spreads from human to human and has a high mortality rate, though it is less infectious, the Kerala government had earlier said. The state health minister said the condition of all 76 people who are in the high-risk contact category remains stable.

She said 13 persons who have mild symptoms are now being monitored in the hospital, and only the child is in the Intensive Care Unit. The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines Nipah infection as a zoonotic illness that is transmitted to people from animals, and can also be transmitted through contaminated food or directly from person-to-person. The incubation period for