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Seven days in medicine: 16-22 May 2018
BMJ 2018 ; 361 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k2237 (Published 24 May 2018)
Cite this as: BMJ 2018;361:k2237
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Re: Seven days in medicine: 16-22 May 2018
Nipah viral Encephalitis Outbreak in India, May 2018.
In India, Nipah Virus has affected humans without any involvement of pigs. The first outbreak was observed in Siliguri, West Bengal, in 2001.
The second incident also emerged in the Nadia district in West Bengal in 2007. Scientists have found that humans often contracted the disease by drinking raw date palm sap tapped directly from trees, a sweet treat that fruit bats also enjoy.
The third outbreak is reported in the 2nd week of May 2018 in the southern Indian state of Kerala's Kozhikode district, which is on high alert as a deadly virus called Nipah virus claimed nine lives. The fast-spreading virus Nipah reported has a mortality rate of 70 per cent. The central government of India has sent a multi-disciplinary central team from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to the district in the wake of deaths due to the Nipah virus outbreak.
The Kerala government and central government has assured that all arrangements are in place and there is no need to panic. It also sanctioned an emergency fund of Rs 2 million (Rs 20 lakh) to the Kozhikode Medical College to tackle the Nipah outbreak.
Competing interests: No competing interests
25 May 2018
M A. Aleem
Neurologist
A.M.Hakkim
ABC Hospital . Dhanalakshmi Srinivasan Medical College and Hospital
Trichy 620018. Perambalur 621212
Tamilnadu India
@drmaaleem
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