Nipah epidemic in Kerala Case infected with bats, others by hospitals: study

A thorough study of the Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala revealed that only the index case was infected with bat in the community, but that all remaining cases were due to transmission of the virus in three hospitals in the country. Kozhikode district.

The research report "Epidemiological Investigation of Nipah Virus Disease in Kerala" was recently published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, published by Infectious Diseases Society of America. The study, conducted by Dr. G Arunkumar of the Manipal Virus Research Center, was funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research under the Ministry of Health and Family.

The epidemic of Nipah virus, a highly fatal emerging zoonotic virus, was reported in Kozhikode district in May-June this year. There were 23 suspected cases of the disease. However, the laboratory was able to confirm only 18 cases, apart from the index case.
The outbreak had killed 17 people. Samples of the index case, Muhammed Sabith, 27, were not sent for Nipah virus testing.

According to the report, the death rate of the outbreak in Kozhikode was 91%. The WHO has placed the Nipah mortality rate in an estimated range of between 40 and 75%. The report states that the Nipah interhuman transmission pattern is consistent with that of two previous West Bengal outbreaks – Siliguri (2001) and Nadia (2007). He says, "Only the index case has been infected in the community. All remaining cases were due to nosocomial transmission (occurring at a hospital or acquired at the hospital) in 3 different hospitals. "

Once contacted, Dr. Arunkumar said, "The transmission of Nipah to Kerala called for the effective implementation of an infection control mechanism in state hospitals. All hospitals should strictly follow infectious disease control practices … "
He said the chances of another Nipah epidemic in Kerala are rare.