Nipah Virus: A matter of concern

Nipah virus claims many mysterious deaths for the past few days in Kerala, a state on India's tropical Malabar Coast. This viral infection has taken its toll over many people recently.

Nipah virus (NiV) infection is a newly emerging zoonosis that causes diseases in animals and humans. The main host is said to be fruit bats belonging to the Pteropodidae family, Pteropus genus.

This infection was first seen during the outbreak of disease in Kampung Sangai Nipah, Malaysia around mid-1998. Later, this incident coincides with a place in Singapore. On this occasion, pigs were seen as the intermediate hosts. Subsequest NiV outbreaks were similar to one another. The NiV infection found in affected pigs got transmitted to humans.

Later, in the year of 2004, many people were affected with NiV and it is said that the consumption of date palm sap contaminated by the infected bats was the cause for the NiV transmission. Gradually, this infection spread like wildfire in and around the infected regions. Human-to-human transmission was allegedly documented even at the hospital wings in India.

The RNA (Ribonucleic Acid) virus of family Paramyxoviridae, genus Henipavirus is closely related to Hendra virus.

Over 6oo cases have been documented between 1998 and 2015. The indistinguishable situation was spotted in West Bengal in 2001 and later in 2007. More than 265 people have fallen in the trap of NiV infection. Among them, 40% of the people were taken intensive health care.

Here are few symptoms you must know:

• Fatal encephalitis, inflammation of brain due to infection.
• Respiratory illness
• 3-14 days of persistent fever, headache and drowsiness
• Disorientation, a condition of having lost one's sense of direction, typically a mental confusion.
• Neurological signs such as convulsions and pulmonary signs
• Coma within 24-48 houirs
• Asymptomatic infection
• Acute respiratory syndrome

Hey, Bats!

Other diseases supposedly transmitted by bats are:

• Australian bat lyssavirus (ABLV), a virus that can be spread to humans by the saliva of infected bats through  mucous membrane or broken skin. Only 3 cases have been noticed and those three were in Queensland, a state of Australia.
• Hendra virus infection, a virus that is transmitted by bats and causes diseases in horses and humans via direct contact.
• Histoplamosis, a rare lung infection.
• Leptospirosis, a bacterial disease that can be transmitted via the urine of the infected ones.
• Salmonella and other bacteria that cause gastroenteritis may be found in animal faeces.

Note: Bats don't cause these diseases. They are just a host that carry disease-causing microbes (pathogens) and transmit via direct contact, air, water or food.

Bats are one of the pollinators which helps in the process of pollination!

There is no medicine to cure Nipah Virus infection. All we need is supportive care and awareness of symptoms.