Nipah virus situation not alarming, but precautions needed: ICMR chair
Dr. Kant said that the virus causes respiratory tract infection, followed by high fever and body ache. There is no vaccine as yet to fight Nipah virus
Guwahati, Feb 8: Though Nipah virus cases have been reported from different parts of the country, the situation is not alarming as of now. But people of the states where infections have been detected should take precautions to prevent spreading of the disease, said the “chair” of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Dr Rajni Kant.
When contacted by The Assam Tribune, Dr Kant said that Nipah virus cases have been mostly detected in the states of Kerala and West Bengal.
He said the disease can be prevented from spreading by taking adequate precautions.
Kerala has done a good thing by immediately isolating the infected people to control the disease from spreading, he said.
He also suggested that all the states should be careful and if any case is detected, immediate precautionary measures should be taken and infected persons should be isolated.
Dr Kant revealed that Nipah virus comes from bats. If any person consumes a fruit, part of which is eaten by bats, the person would be infected immediately. Then the virus spreads from person to person.
The virus causes respiratory tract infection, followed by high fever and body ache. Unfortunately, there is no vaccine as yet to fight Nipah virus, he added.
The ICMR official further said that Covid is still here but as majority of the people in the country have been vaccinated or got exposed to the virus multiple times, antibodies have been created in human bodies and the impact of the virus is less.
People are still getting infected and suffer from fever, but no one needs intensive care anymore.
Replying to a question on whether Covid has anything to do with the frequent heart attacks, particularly among young people, Dr Kant said that Covid vaccines are not the cause of heart attacks.
“The ICMR has carried out detailed studies on the issue and it is confirmed that the Covid vaccine is safe and it has got nothing to do with heart attacks,” he added.
However, at the same time, Dr Kant said that no one still knows whether Covid is the reason for heart attacks and further research is required on the issue.