Kerala will intensify the disease surveillance activities and maintain vigil against Nipah across the State as Nipah virus antibodies have been detected in bats in Wayanad as well in Indian Council of Medical Research’s bat surveillance studies, Health Minister Veena George said here on Wednesday.
ICMR’s ongoing bat surveillance survey has detected NiV antibodies in Pteropus bat species in 14 States and one Union Territory, indicating a wider presence of the virus and possibilities of outbreaks across the country. In that sense, all districts in Kerala are vulnerable to NiV outbreaks as fruit bats have a wide presence in the State. Thus the detection of NiV antibodies in bat samples from Wayanad is not surprising as it is an extension of the same ecosystem in Kozhikode, Ms. George said, while addressing a media conference.
Wayanad is also being prepared to strengthen all One Health-related activities and public awareness campaigns and training is being imparted to all health-care personnel in Wayanad on maintaining a high level of suspicion whenever unusual animal deaths occur or patients turn up with acute respiratory syndrome or unusual presentations with acute encephalitis syndrome are reported.
