According to Zhazarevich, there is a risk of further infection, especially concerning the virus reservoir among bats observed in certain regions of India and Bangladesh, including West Bengal. He emphasized the need to raise public awareness about risk factors, such as the consumption of palm sap.
The Nipah virus, first identified in 1999 during an outbreak among pig farmers in Malaysia, is a dangerous pathogen with neither a vaccine nor effective treatment. The WHO classifies it as a high-risk pathogen, with a fatality rate ranging from 40 to 75%.
Last week, The Economic Times reported a new outbreak of the Nipah virus in the Kolkata area of West Bengal. Five cases of the disease have been recorded, three of which were confirmed last week. Among the infected are a doctor, a nurse, and another healthcare worker. About one hundred people who came into contact with the patients have been quarantined.
The first two registered cases in this outbreak occurred immediately after the New Year involving two nurses, one of whom is currently in a coma. It is believed that the source of infection was a patient who died before laboratory tests were conducted for an unspecified illness.
