Two suspected cases of Nipah virus infections were detected at the Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratory in West Bengal on Monday, Union Health Minister JP Nadda said.
The Nipah virus is a “zoonotic illness” transferred from animals such as pigs and fruit bats to humans. The virus can also be caught through human-to-human transmission.
It causes fever and cold-like symptoms in patients. The infection can also cause encephalitis, which is the inflammation of the brain, and myocarditis, or the inflammation of the heart, in some cases.
The two persons, a man and a woman, are healthcare workers at a private hospital in North 24 Parganas district’s Barasat and are undergoing treatment at the facility, the Hindustan Times reported.
They had gone to their homes in East Midnapore and East Burdwan in December, prior to falling ill. They have no history of travel outside the state, The Indian Express quoted West Bengal Chief Secretary Nandini Chakraborty as saying.
They are reported to be in a “very critical” condition and have been kept on ventilator support.
The chief secretary said the state’s health department is tracing persons who may have come in contact with the two healthcare workers in North 24 Parganas, Purba Bardhaman and Nadia districts. It is also investigating how the two contacted the infection.
The Union health ministry said on social media that it has assured…
