Nipah outbreak; national-class virology lab an essential need

With the death of a 23-year-old man at Vandoor in Malappuram confirmed to be due to the Nipah virus, the state is once under fear of the deadly disease. The youth, who was pursuing his higher studies in Bengaluru, returned home after suffering a leg injury. He then developed a high fever and was admitted to the hospital. Tests conducted at Kozhikode Medical College revealed that he was infected with Nipah. He died in the meantime. The disease was fully confirmed in a follow-up test conducted at the Institute of Virology in Pune. With this, strict restrictions have been imposed in a few wards of Thiruvali panchayat in Malappuram district. Instructions have been issued to close all educational institutions here. Gatherings of people and organizing public events are prohibited.

This is the sixth time the Nipah virus has been reported in the state. A 14-year-old boy had died of Nipah at Pandikkadu in Malappuram two months ago. The disease did not spread to more people back then perhaps because of the stringent precautionary measures taken by the health department. The security measures taken that day have to be repeated now. As the people are well aware of the threat of the disease, the Nipah threat can be contained this time as well with the cooperation of the people. However, there should not be any shortage of diligence from the health department.

The new Nipah outbreak is just 10 kilometres away from the spot where the Nipah death occurred two months ago. It is not clear where the disease was infected from. The health department has directed that all those who come to hospitals with suspected symptoms should be monitored in the isolation ward.
While about 20 people died in the first Nipah outbreak, the subsequent spread of the disease was strictly prevented. There was no further loss of life due to this. Experts say that Nipah disease is spread by bats. However, there are no research results to confirm this. Whenever an infection occurs, a team of scientists runs around and conducts tests and studies in bat-dwelling centres. Further activities will also stop when there is a report that the disease has subsided. Despite five previous outbreaks of Nipah, a national-class virology lab could not be set up here. The sample should still be sent to a lab in Pune to make the final confirmation!

It has been years since we have been waiting for the emergence of the country's top virology lab at Thonakkal in Thiruvananthapuram. In the wake of the Nipah outbreak in Malappuram again, all this will be discussed again. As soon as the fear of the disease subsides, everything will cool down.

The extent of the spread of the disease can be ascertained only if all those who came in contact with the 23-year-old man who died of Nipah are traced. The health department authorities have started efforts to do so. The health department's difficulty will be reduced if all those in doubt come forward voluntarily and pass on the information. It is only through the cooperation of the people that such diseases can be brought under control.