No new Nipah virus cases: Kerala after man who tested positive remains critical

No new Nipah cases have been reported in Kozhikode district and no fresh contacts have been added to the surveillance list, Kerala Health Minister K Muraleedharan said on Monday.

In a statement, the minister said the Nipah patient undergoing treatment at the Kozhikode Government Medical College Hospital remains on ventilator support.

The second dose of the monoclonal antibody drug was administered to the patient in accordance with ICMR guidelines, he said.

Muraleedharan also said the second test result of a healthcare worker included in the patient's primary contact list had returned negative.

Of the seven persons admitted for observation, two close relatives of the patient were discharged on Monday after their symptoms subsided. Their Nipah test results had earlier returned negative, the minister said.

Another close relative, who had been under quarantine as part of the contact list, was admitted to the medical college hospital for observation on Sunday.

At present, six persons are under observation in the hospital, while the sample of another healthcare worker on the contact list has been sent for testing.

According to the Health Department, 103 persons are currently on the contact list. Of them, four are categorised as very high-risk contacts, 14 as high-risk contacts and 85 as low-risk contacts. The contact list includes 45 healthcare workers.

As part of intensified surveillance activities, a central team visited the private hospital in Feroke where the infected patient had initially sought treatment, officials said.

Health workers also conducted field visits to 46 houses in Division 5 of Ramanattukara municipality, where the infection was reported.

The latest Nipah case in the state was confirmed on June 11 after test results of a 43-year-old man from Ramanattukara here returned positive.

Nipah is a zoonotic virus that can spread from animals to humans and, in some cases, between humans. Fruit bats, also known as flying foxes, are the natural reservoir of the virus.

The infection can cause severe respiratory illness and encephalitis and has a high fatality rate.

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