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Man who died of Nipah came home for leg injury treatment

By, Kochi
Sep 17, 2024 07:30 AM IST

The 24-year-old man, who recently died due to Nipah virus in Kerala, was a psychology student at a Bengaluru college and had come home to Wandoor in Malappuram district on August 23

The 24-year-old man, who recently died due to Nipah virus in Kerala, was a psychology student at a Bengaluru college and had come home to Wandoor in Malappuram district on August 23 for treatment of an injured leg, health and local panchayat officials said.

The health department said on Sunday that the 24-year-old man had travelled to a few areas with friends and had come in contact with many people (REUTERS)
The health department said on Sunday that the 24-year-old man had travelled to a few areas with friends and had come in contact with many people (REUTERS)

The victim, whose name was withheld by officials due to reasons of privacy, died at the MES Hospital in Perinthalmanna on the morning of September 9, a day after he was admitted there following symptoms of meningitis, a condition affecting the protective membranes around the brain and spinal cord.

In the latest case, the suspicion of Nipah arose after the Regional Medical Officer conducted a death investigation. Samples, collected from the deceased’s body were sent to the Kozhikode Medical College hospital on September 13 where it was subjected to PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing at the microbiology lab. The samples returned a positive result the same day and were sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune for further confirmation. The national testing institute confirmed Nipah virus on Sunday.

“The patient was admitted to our hospital on September 8, He was displaying symptoms of meningitis. He had sought treatment at three other private facilities before being admitted here. His condition was bad. Despite all our efforts, he passed away on the morning of September 9,” Rahul R, operations manager at MES Hospital in Perinthalmanna, said. When pressed for more details, he said the district medical officer (DMO) is authorised to release information. R Renuka, the Malappuram DMO, was unavailable for comment.

It was the second death due to Nipah virus reported within two months.

Ramankutty K, president of the Thiruvali panchayat where the victim’s home is located, told HT that the 24-year-old was a MSc student of psychology at a private college in Bengaluru and had arrived in Kerala on August 23 for the treatment for an injured leg.

“He had some injury on one of his legs and had sought treatment for it here. He began experiencing fever and vomiting on September 4 and sought treatment at a private clinic in Naduvath the next day. On September 7, he went to another private clinic before being referred to the NIMS hospital in Wandoor the same day. He was finally admitted to the MES hospital in Perinthalmanna on September 8 and died there the next day,” he said.

While the deceased’s father had passed away many years ago, his mother succumbed to cancer two months ago. He is survived by three sisters and a brother, two of whom live and work in the Gulf countries, Ramankutty said.

“The deceased’s funeral was held in the village on September 10, which was attended by locals, family members, and his batchmates from the Bengaluru college. At that time, it was not known that he had Nipah virus infection,” he said.

The health department said on Sunday that the 24-year-old man had travelled to a few areas with friends and had come in contact with many people. A preliminary list of 151 persons was drawn up following a rigorous contact-tracing exercise. Among the contacts, 10 of them have shown mild symptoms and are admitted to isolation wards at the Government Medical College Hospital in Manjeri, an official said adding that their samples have been sent for testing to NIV, Pune.

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