Context:
Union Health Minister confirmed that the deaths reported from Kerala were due to Nipah virus.
About Nipah:
- It is a zoonotic disease.
- Natural host – Fruit bats
- Other hosts – Pigs, dogs, cats, goats, horses and sheep.
- 1st reported – Malaysia in 1998
- Transmission – transmitted to humans from animals (such as bats or pigs), or contaminated foods and can also be transmitted directly from human-to-human.
- Symptoms – Inflammation of the brain, Late onset of Encephalitis, and sometimes asymptomatic infection.
- Confirmatory tests – Serum Neutralization Test, ELISA, RT-PCR.
- Treatment – Currently, there are no vaccines for both humans and animals.
- Countries – Common in Asia, primarily Bangladesh and India.
World Health Organization (WHO) says the Nipah infection has been found to be fatal in 40% to 75% of the infected patients.
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Question
Consider the following statements:
1. In tropical regions, Zika virus disease is transmitted by the same mosquito that transmits dengue.
2. Sexual transmission of Zika virus disease is possible.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2017 Prelims]
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (c)
