West Nile Virus In Kerala

Kerala Health Department has sounded an alert in the districts of Thrissur, Malappuram and Kozhikode following the detection of the vector-borne West Nile fever. The disease claimed a life in...

Ruby Thakur
May 8, 2024
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Kerala Health Department has sounded an alert in the districts of Thrissur, Malappuram and Kozhikode following the detection of the vector-borne West Nile fever. The disease claimed a life in Thrissur and six other confirmed cases were reported in Kozhikode and Malappuram in the last two days. Samples of people, who showed symptoms of the disease and underwent treatment, were sent by the administration to the Pune-based National Institute of Virology as a routine exercise.

West Nile Virus In Kerala

Why In News

Kerala Health Department has sounded an alert in the districts of Thrissur, Malappuram and Kozhikode following the detection of the vector-borne West Nile fever.

The disease claimed a life in Thrissur and six other confirmed cases were reported in Kozhikode and Malappuram in the last two days. Samples of people, who showed symptoms of the disease and underwent treatment, were sent by the administration to the Pune-based National Institute of Virology as a routine exercise.

What Is West Nile Fever

West Nile Virus (WNV) was detected for the first time in a woman in the West Nile district of Uganda in 1937. The fever is spread by the Culex species of mosquitoes.
In India, the fever was first detected back in 2011. A six-year-old boy from Kerala’s Malappuram had passed away due to the fever in 2019.

Later, a 47-year-old man died of the fever in Thrissur district in May 2022.
According to the state health department, the WNV can cause a fatal neurological disease in humans, however, most of the persons who are infected by it may not show any symptoms. It is mainly transmitted to humans through the bites of infected mosquitoes.
WNV is majorly found in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, North America and West Asia, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Symptoms

Around 80% of people infected with West Nile Virus are asymptomatic and do not show any symptoms, while in several cases it can lead to West Nile fever or severe West Nile disease.
Some of the major symptoms seen among patients infected with West Nile fever include fever, headache, tiredness, body aches, nausea, vomiting, skin rashes and swollen lymph glands.

Besides this, some patients can even show severe symptoms including neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, and paralysis, the WHO stated.
It is further estimated that one in 150 persons infected with the West Nile virus may develop a more severe form of the disease.

In most of the cases, the incubation period is usually three to 14 days.
Some people experience symptoms like fever, headache, vomiting and itching and in one per cent of the cases, it can lead to brain damage resulting in unconsciousness and sometimes death, the minister’s statement said.
But the death rate is relatively low compared to Japanese encephalitis which shows similar symptoms and is more dangerous.
As there is no medicine or vaccine available against West Nile virus, symptomatic treatment and prevention are key, the minister said.
As part of the preventive measures, she suggested wearing clothing that completely covers the body, use of mosquito nets and repellants and keeping one’s home and surroundings clean.

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Ruby Thakur

General Studies Lecturer SSBCrackExams, BSc In PCM, Trained Students For State Services Exams. Expertise in Geography ,Polity & Current Affairs. Love Travelling.