Indian nurse infected with Nipah virus dies

BHUBANESWAR: India: An Indian nurse who had contracted the deadly Nipah virus in December has died, a senior health official in the eastern state of West Bengal confirmed on Thursday.

The nurse was one of two confirmed Nipah cases reported in the state and had been undergoing treatment at a local hospital. She was said to be in critical condition.

“The woman, who was critical, died due to cardiac arrest,” West Bengal Health Secretary Narayan Swaroop Nigam told Reuters.

Nipah virus is commonly transmitted to humans from infected bats or fruit contaminated by them. The virus can cause high fever, respiratory complications and inflammation of the brain, and carries a fatality rate ranging between 40 per cent and 75 per cent, according to global health estimates.

India has reported sporadic Nipah outbreaks in recent years, with the southern state of Kerala considered one of the world’s high-risk regions for the virus.

Following confirmation of the recent cases in India, several Asian countries — including Thailand, Singapore and Pakistan — stepped up airport screening measures. However, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said the overall risk of international spread remains low.

In a related development, the WHO confirmed that a woman in Bangladesh died in January after contracting the virus.

The World Health Organization classifies Nipah as a priority pathogen because of its potential to spark outbreaks. The virus, which can cause severe respiratory illness and brain inflammation, has a fatality rate estimated at between 40 and 75 percent. There is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment for the disease.