WTN- Like Zika and Ebola, Nipah virus is on the World Health Organisation’s list of emerging “Blueprint priority” diseases, which have the potential to cause a global pandemic.

A potentially deadly disease first identified in Malaysia in 1999 is experiencing an outbreak in the state of Kerala. Nipah virus has killed at least 11 people in the region, with at least 25 more hospitalized.

Nipah virus was first identified during an outbreak of disease that took place in Kampung Sungai Nipah, Malaysia in 1998. On this occasion, pigs were the intermediate hosts. However, in subsequent Nipah virus outbreaks, there were no intermediate hosts. In Bangladesh in 2004, humans became infected with Nipah virus as a result of consuming date palm sap that had been contaminated by infected fruit bats. Human-to-human transmission has also been documented, including in a hospital setting in India.

-Window To News
(Source- WHO)