Nipah encephalitis is a zoonotic viral infection caused by the Nipah virus (NiV). Fruit bats of Pteropid species are the primary reservoir for NiV. The first human Nipah outbreaks were reported from Malaysia and Singapore in 1998-1999 with 283 cases and 109 deaths. In Malaysia people developed severe encephalitis who came in close contact with NiV infected pigs. In Bangladesh, the first case of NiV encephalitis was identified retrospectively in 2001 in Meherpur district. Consumption of raw date palm juice contaminated by fruit bats was identified as the possible risk factor for NiV infection. A hospital-based surveillance system was established in Bangladesh in 2006. The objective of the surveillance is to detect outbreaks of NiV infection and to identify possible risk factors and modes of transmission.

Text box 2: Case definition of Nipah encephalitis (Source: National Guideline for Management, Prevention and Control of Nipah Virus Infection including Encephalitis. 2011⁸):

In collaboration with icddr,b and technical support from CDC and Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), IEDCR is currently conducting the NiV surveillance in 14 sentinel sites, which includes 12 government medical college hospitals and 2 district hospitals covering all the 8 divisions of the country.

Highlights:

• From 2006 to 2023 a total of 338 NiV cases were detected in 32 districts of Bangladesh. Faridpur district has the highest number of reported cases (n= 71) followed by Rajbari (n=35), Naogaon (n=32) and Lalmonirhat district (n=24).

• In 2023 there were 13 confirmed cases of NiV infection. The case fatality is 77% (10/13).

For further details, please click the link below:

 -- https://iedcr.portal.gov.bd/site/page/03d6e960-2539-4966-8788-4a12753e410d/-