Hospitals set up isolated wards fearing Nipah

Bengaluru: A suspected Nipah case in Mangaluru has warned other districts. Throughout the State, government hospitals have been instructed to set up isolated wards with separate staff to attend to patients affected by the virus. In Bengaluru, Rajiv Gandhi Institute for Chest Diseases (RGICD), KC General Hospital and Victoria Hospital have all set up isolated wards.

Dr C Nagaraja, Director of RGICD, said that the hospital will establish a special screening centre with four or five separate beds, separate doctors, nurses, physicians and a social worker. Hygienic precautions like use of clean gloves and gowns and washing hands regularly with a disinfectant will also be duly followed. A neurologist will also be roped in since the condition involves many neurological complications like headache, unconsciousness and coma.

Since RGICD specialises in treating respiratory disorders, Nagaraja admits that it lacks the expertise to treat a neurological condition that is caused by the Nipah virus. He said that only initial treatment will be administered in the hospital after which patients will have to be referred to other hospitals, because the hospital lacks a neurological department.

While hospitals are still trying to figure out a cure and treatment for the infection, there are messages being circulated on social media that a certain herbal medicine made with parijatha leaves can cure the infection. The State health department dismissed these messages and said that there was no proven cure for Nipah. “There is no medicine in allopathy for Nipah viral infection and no alternate medicine has been tested against the virus. For any clarity on the infection, public can call the toll free number 104 Arogya Vani helpline,” they said.

Dr B.G. Prakash Kumar said on Wednesday that there was only one suspected case of Nipah from Mangaluru. The patient is a 20 year old woman and her body fluids were sent to the Manipal Centre for Virus Research (MCVR) for testing. The test results will have to be confirmed by National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune.