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West Nile Virus Outbreak Suspected in Kerala After Nipah

by Iswarya on Aug 4 2018 5:25 PM

West Nile Virus Outbreak Suspected in Kerala After Nipah
Kerala government after fighting Nipah outbreak, now have a presumed case of West Nile virus (WNV) in Kozhikode.
A 24-year-old woman is kept under observation in an isolation ward at Medical College Hospital for a suspected case of West Nile viral infection and has been treated for the infection since then.

Dr. Jayasree, district medical officer at Kozhikode, stated that they could confirm the suspicion of West Nile viral infection only if there is a four-fold increase in the antibody count in the second sample. She also said that the virus is spread only through mosquitoes and the symptoms are similar to Japanese Encephalitis or Meningitis.

In the meantime, the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune obtained the blood sample of the woman and reported positive confirmation of the infection.

Doctors may prescribe painkillers for infected patients as there is no vaccine found to treat the infection.

In the United States, more than 2000 patients were reported to be infected by the West Nile virus last year with casualties of 121 people.

Tourism of the state was also severely affected as a warning was issued for the travelers saying not to travel to Kerala.

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Source-Medindia


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