A Niprah virus outbreak was confirmed once again in Kerala's Kozhikode on Saturday. A 14-year-old boy, native to Malappuram district's Pandikkad, tested positive for the deadly virus at the Pune NIV (National Institute of Virology).
Pandikkad was declared the epicentre of the outbreak and precautionary measures have already been initiated, the health ministry said.
It was on Friday that the boy was hospitalised at a private facility. His samples were sent to the virology institute after testing positive at the virology lab at Kozhikode Medical College, Manorama Online said in a report. The patient, who is currently on ventilator support, will soon be shifted to Medical College.
The contact tracing has begun. High-risk contacts have already been isolated and their samples have been sent for testing," Kerala health minister Veeba George told the media.
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The health minister also asked the people in and around Pandikkad to wear masks in public spaces and avoid visiting patients in hospitals.
Nipah outbreaks have been reported in Kozhikode district in 2018, 2021, and 2023 and in Ernakulam district in 2019, and the presence of Nipah virus antibodies had been detected in bats in Kozhikode, Wayanad, Idukki, Malappuram and Ernakulam districts.
