Two epicentres have been identified for the Nipah outbreak in Kozhikode district of Kerala, after four Nipah cases were confirmed. Two people have died of Nipah infection so far, while two others are currently under treatment. The Health Department has also announced a list of containment zones in the district.
Sharing details of the cases confirmed so far, Kerala Health Minister Veena George on September 12, Tuesday, told the media that of the five samples sent for testing to the National Institute of Virology, Pune, three returned positive. "The person who died yesterday (September 11) and two others who are under treatment, including a nine-year-old-boy, tested positive for Nipah virus," she said.
The cause of death of a 44-year-old man who died on August 30 was initially considered to be liver cirrhosis, said the minister. “But his 9-year-old son and 25-year-old brother-in-law who are currently under treatment, have tested positive," she added.
The 44-year-old man who died on August 30 and the other 40-year-old patient who died on September 11 spent an hour in close proximity at a private hospital, which means the latter could have contracted the infection from the first patient, according to health officials. “As of now, the index case (the first identified case in a group of related cases) is the man who died on August 30, as his family members were also infected," the Minister said.
Following is the list of wards that the Health Department has declared as Nipah containment zones – wards 1,2,3,4,5,12,13,14,15 of Ayanchery Panchayat, wards 1,2,3,4,5,12,13,14 of Maruthonkara Panchayat, wards 1,2, 20 of Thiruvallur Panchayat, wards 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 of Kuttiadi Panchayat, wards 5,6,7,8,9 of Kayakkodi panchayat, wards 6,7 of Villiappally panchayat and wards 2,10,11,12,13,14,15,16 of Kavilumpara Panchayat.
The Health Department has identified 168 contacts of the two deceased persons. In the first case, 158 contacts were identified, out of which 127 were health workers and the rest were family members and neighbours. In the second case, around 200 contacts of the deceased person were identified.