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Kerala has reported its second confirmed Nipah virus death this month, a 50-year-old man from Changalleri in Palakkad’s Mannarkkad. The deceased, who was undergoing treatment for fever and respiratory distress at a private hospital in Malappuram’s Perinthalmanna, succumbed to the infection on July 12.
The man was admitted to the hospital on July 11 with a high fever and breathing difficulties. His condition worsened rapidly, and he died the next evening. The virus was confirmed through a test conducted at the Manjeri Medical College Hospital in Malappuram. However, a sample was sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune, for further confirmatory testing.
The Health Department has imposed restrictions within a three-kilometre radius of the deceased's residence. The area is likely to be officially declared as a containment zone.
This is the third case of Nipah in Kerala in July. After the first two cases were reported, the state government placed three districts on alert– Palakkad, Malappuram, and Kozhikode. Currently Thrissur, Kannur, and Wayanad have also been put on alert.
On July 1, a 17-year-old plus two student from Malappuram’s Makkaraparamba died of Nipah at a private hospital in Kozhikode. She had been shifted there from a private hospital in Kottakkal on June 28 with high fever and severe vomiting. Doctors said she was brain-dead by the time she was brought in. As many as 43 healthcare workers who had come in contact with her were quarantined for observation.
The second Nipah case is that of a 38-year-old woman, currently under treatment at a hospital in Perinthalmanna. She reportedly came in contact with the 17-year-old who died.
Health Minister Veena George had earlier stated that five individuals were under observation in Malappuram with suspected Nipah symptoms.