Soon after the Kerala government grappled with the Nipah virus, reports have said that a case of the West Nile virus is suspected in Kozhikode. At least one person is being treated for the infection, while some reports said that two people are infected with the virus.
The infection can only be confirmed if the second samples sent come back positive, two weeks after the first samples are tested. A 24-year-old woman’s first samples came back positive for the virus, The Hindu reported on Friday. The woman has been receiving treatment for the infection since July 13 at the Kozhikode medical college hospital and is being kept in an isolation ward. Her second samples will be sent for testing on Saturday, said V Jayasree, District Medical Officer.
West Nile fever is typically spread through mosquitoes. There are no vaccines or medicines to treat the infection, the Centre for Disease Control says. The infection is not spread through human contact. Those infected do not normally have any symptoms, but about 20% of them develop fever and other symptoms and could develop a fatal illness. Around 10% of people infected develop “severe illness affecting the central nervous system”, according to the CDC.