[ad_1]
An international medical journal said the virus killed 21 people, which contradicts the official figure of 17 dead.
According to state government figures, the Nipah virus reportedly killed 17 people, including 14 in Kozhikode and three in Malapuram since the beginning of its epidemic last May.
The figure includes the death of Mohammed Sabith, the first convict, whose samples had not been tested for Nipah.
However, a recent report published in the "Journal of Infectious Diseases" said that the total number of deaths in Nipah in Kerala was 21.
Interestingly, Secretary of State for Health Rajeev Sadanandan was among the experts who prepared the report of the study during the global review.
Health Minister K. K Shylaja said the government estimates that 18 people have been tested positive for the deadly virus.
The government updated the death toll to 17 in July after the death of Sabith, the first victim whose samples had not been tested for Nipah.
The others did not show the symptoms of the deadly virus, but health officials could not confirm the infection because their samples were not collected, did they? she told the press Saturday in Kozhikode.
It seems, however, that the newspaper counted deaths as Nipah deaths, she said.
Sadanandan rejected the controversy sparked by the study report and said that there was no confusion about the numbers.
Of a total of 246 samples sent, 18 were confirmed clinically positive, he said.
"When you can not check the samples, it stays in the list of probable.
When we checked the records, four cases were identified as probable, but there were no samples, "he told PTI.
"Thus, there were a total of 23 cases, one index case (Sabith), 18 confirmed cases and four probable cases," he added, adding that the journal had its own criteria for preparing the report.
(This story has not been changed by Business Standard staff and is generated automatically from a syndicated feed.)
[ad_2]
Source link
