India: back on the terrible epidemic that strikes the country

Back on an epidemic that few people speak, the Nipah virus that currently affects India is relatively dangerous.

India is currently affected by a terrible virus, the Nipah virus. In the space of a few weeks, this virus killed a dozen people, including members of the same family and the nurse who treated them.

This virus is actually an RNA virus, i.e. of the same genus as the Ebola virus or the flu. To be precise, it is a paramyxovirus and is therefore of the same family as measles. Very old, this virus was finally discovered in 1998, in Malaysia and rife for the time, only in Southeast Asia and India. Very quickly, surveys were set up and it was determined that, very frequently, small epidemics affect the continent when no one was really aware of it.

Similar to Ebola.
Just like Ebola, which is prevalent in the DRC today, this virus is transmitted from animals to humans. Here again, the resemblance to Ebola is striking since it is basically a wild frugivorous bat that carries the disease. This is transmitted through saliva or excrement. In India, the epidemic is reported to have started after palm juice was contaminated. Prized by men and bats, this refreshing drink has everything from the perfect culprit.

In terms of symptoms, these are again “classic” symptoms, namely a high fever, headaches and even discomfort. For the most serious cases, the Nipah virus can cause acute respiratory syndrome, even encephalitis. In 70% of cases, it is fatal. 260 people lost their lives in the space of a decade or so.

Show More

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button