Nipah virus: Past outbreaks, scrutiny helped in case detection

A combination of familiarity with symptoms, adherence to protocols laid down during previous outbreaks and effective contact tracing measures helped officials in Kerala detect cases of Nipah virus in time, experts said on Thursday, a day after a 24-year-old health worker tested positive taking the total number of cases to five. “Doctors treating the nine-year-old boyfound that his father had also experienced symptoms like disorientation before his death,” Dr Kumar, who was involved in management of the virus during the last outbreak in 2018, said. On September 11, another man, 40, was admitted to the hospital with “symptoms of pneumonia which led to his death within minutes”, Dr Kumar said. About the 40-year-old, health officials said that he displayed symptoms like “vomiting and disorientation” at previous hospitals and clinics.