What is Nipah virus? Know transmission, symptoms, precautions, treatment

The Nipah virus has started to spread in India. Following two deaths at a private hospital in Kozhikode, Kerala, the state’s health department has started taking precautions such as declaring seven villages as containment zones and closing down schools and offices. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the Nipah virus may become a cause of worry for the public. Here’s what to know about the Nipah virus.

3 things you need to know: 

• The Nipah Virus was first discovered in 1999.
• Its breakouts have occurred annually in parts of Asia. 
• The virus has raised concerns because of its high rates of transmission and mortality. 

What is Nipah virus, how it spreads?

Nipah is not a fast-spreading virus similar to COVID-19. However, the high mortality rate of the virus makes it more dangerous. According to the WHO, human infections during the first-ever Nipah outbreak in 1999 in Malaysia were “caused by direct contact with sick pigs or their contaminated tissues. Transmission is thought to have occurred via unprotected exposure to secretions from the pigs, or unprotected contact with the tissue of a sick animal". Later, the WHO informed that fruit bats are the natural hosts of the virus.

(A representative image for the Nipah virus | Image: fusion_medical_animation/Unsplash)

Symptoms of Nipah virus

As per the CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention), the symptoms of Nipah virus become prominent between 3-14 days, when fever and headache become common. Respiratory swelling, cough, sore throat and difficulty in breathing also accompany the cold and the fever. The most lethal symptom of the Nipah virus is brain swelling, which could potentially be deemed lethal. Other severe symptoms include disorientation, drowsiness, confusion, coma and seizures. The lethality of the virus is between 40-75%.

(The Nipah virus also spreads through contact between carriers and the uninfected | Image: andyadcon/Unsplash)

How to prevent contracting the Nipah virus?

The CDC recommends that people practice consistent handwashing with soap and water, avoid coming into contact with sick bats and pigs, avoid home nests of bats and avoid consuming contaminated fruits that might have come into contact with bats. Lastly, they should also not come into contact with anyone who might have contracted the virus.

Currently, there are no standardised treatments for the Nipah virus. Supportive care, with rest, hydration and treatment of symptoms as they come is the way to treat it. Immunotherapeutic treatments are also under developments, and remain currently in the clinical trial phase.