Nipah Virus Infection

Abstract

Nipah virus is a type of RNA virus and this virus may usually circulate among specific types of fruit bats. In the year 1998, this disease was first identified by a team of scientists at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya in Malaysia and the disease was named after a village called Sungai Nipah in Malaysia. The out breaks of Nipah virus infection have been reported in Malaysia, India, Singapore, Bangladesh and Philippines. Typically, the spread requires direct contact with an infected source. Through the oro-nasal route, the virus enters its host and causes the infection. From the terminal stages of the disease, human tissues have only been studied and the site of the initial replication was found to be unknown. After the exposure of the virus, it may take 5-14 days for the onset of the symptoms. The symptoms of Nipah virus infection can be fever, headache, cough, shortness of breath and confusion. This review article was mainly focused in describing various aspects of Nipah virus infection. Human to human nosocomial infections can be prevented by strictly following the standard infection control practices. Implementation of infection control practices like isolation of patients, good hand hygiene practices and the use of personal protective equipments may help us in the prevention of person to person transmission. Health care workers exposed to the suspected Nipah virus patients must inform their higher officials and should undergo testing for the Nipah virus. Discourage the funeral practices that require the direct contact with the remains.