Nipah virus and Kerala: What is the connection

Nipah virus is not new to Kerala: the State is experiencing it’s eighth outbreak since 2018 this July. So far, there have been four confirmed cases: of these, two persons have died, while the other two remain hospitalised. A total of 675 people across the State are currently under observation, with 38 classified as being in the highest risk category.One question that many have wondered about is: why Kerala? Why is it that this one State has seen multiple outbreaks of the deadly virus? What do we know about how it spills over from fruit bats to humans? And what can be done to contain it?

Guest: Dr. Anoop Kumar A.S., director of critical care medicine at Aster North Kerala Cluster, who played a pivotal role in detecting the Nipah virus outbreak in the State in 2018

Host: Zubeda Hamid

Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian

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