NIPAH: SILENTLY RISING INFECTION

Nipah virus infection (NiV) is a viral infection caused by the Nipah virus. Nipah virus provides one of the most striking examples of an emerging virus and illustrates many of the pathways leading from a wildlife reservoir to human infections. Prior to 1998 there had been no reports of a disease of wildlife, domestic animals or humans that would subsequently be considered infection with Nipah virus. Despite the emergence of the related virus, Hendra, a number of years before Nipah virus, there was nothing to herald the sudden appearance of this virus, which in itself is surprising given the regularity of outbreaks since it appeared. However, the characterization of Hendra virus paved the way for the identification of the causative agent of disease in Malaysian pigs and farm workers and assisted in the recognition of the source of the infection and the pathway from the wildlife reservoir to humans. The symptoms start to appear within 3 – 14 days after exposure. The risk of exposure is high for hospital workers and caretakers of those infected with the virus. Prevention of Nipah virus infection is important since there is no effective treatment for the disease. Nipah virus outbreaks have been reported in Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh and India.