Jan 31, 2026
3 min read
Tested at airports in Thailand and Nepal.New Delhi: 'Timely arrest' confirmed.Basetti: "It's deadly, but I don't think there's anything to fear for now."
There is concern in Asia because of the Nipah virus, some cases have been reported in India.There is no vaccine for Nipah, which spreads from animals to humans, and according to the World Health Organization the fatality rate is 40-75%.But how worried are we in Italy?
India, Nipah. Bassetti virus warning: "One of the deadliest in the world. Be alert"
What is India doing?
The Indian authorities - reported by AFP today - announced that they have ensured "timely control" of the virus after the confirmation of two cases in the state of West Bengal.all necessary measures for public health," he added, noting that 196 contacts related to these cases were tested and all were negative.
How is it delivered?
Nipah virus - 'The Standard' reports - can be transmitted to humans from animals such as pigs and fruit bats.It can spread through contaminated food or from person to person.In infected people, it causes illnesses ranging from asymptomatic infection to acute respiratory disease and fatal encephalitis.The exposure period is four to 14 days.The World Health Organization has included covid-19 and viruses among its top ten diseases, along with pathogens such as Zika, due to their potential to trigger pandemics.
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Nipah was first identified in 1998 in a series of cases among pig farmers in Malaysia, AFP reported.In India, the first outbreak of the disease was identified in West Bengal in 2001. In 2018, at least 17 people died from Nipah in Kerala, and in 2023, two more people died from the virus in the same state.
Another mosquito-borne pandemic?Biologist: "The number of original cases increases every summer"
During the first outbreak identified in Malaysia, which also affected Singapore, most infections were due to direct contact with sick pigs or their contaminated tissues.Transmission is thought to occur through unprotected exposure to pig secretions or unprotected contact with diseased animal tissue.In subsequent outbreaks in Bangladesh and India, the most likely source of infection was consumption of fruits or fruit products (such as date palm juice) contaminated with urine or saliva from infected fruit bats.Transmission to family members and caregivers has also been reported.
Is another mosquito pandemic coming?Biologist: "Every summer more and more natives"
Bassetti: "There is no vaccine or cure"
"It is a very deadly virus, with a mortality rate between 50 and 70%. It gives a clinical picture similar to the flu form but then it can give a very serious respiratory picture with a picture of encephalitis which can lead to death."So in a post on social media Matteo Bassetti, director of infectious diseases at the San Martino polyclinic in Genoa."There are no vaccines or drugs. Many Asian countries are preparing to check travelers in airport flights - undergoing an epidemiologist - At this time I would say that there is no need to panic, but we all need to monitor the situation carefully so that this outbreak will also end as quickly as it happened in the past".
Nicastri (Spallanzani): "A dangerous virus, but the threat of loan crimes is real"
The first cases of infection were observed in Malaysia and Singapore between 1998 and 1999 among pig farmers who had direct contact with the respiratory fluids of infected animals.Many epidemics have been recorded in Bangladesh since 2001, and a series of outbreaks have been reported in India.Found in many animals such as pigs, horses, cats and dogs that can cause symptoms or develop mild or moderate disease, in contrast to humans that can develop the disease in unpredictable ways up to 7%, but certainly 75% occur from animal ecosystems, and this leads to the presumption that the first cause we encounter.For the treatment of acute infectious diseases at INMI Spallanzani in Rome.
Could the outbreak of the Nipah virus in India pose a risk to Italy with possible imported cases?" I really think not, - answers the expert - A typical tourist does not go to the poorest areas of India, where there is a possibility of direct contact with feces or secretions of infected animals and there is a risk of infection. In my opinion, the risk of importing cases from India to Italy is completely virtual.
“We are not facing a new round of Covid.”
The alarm from India comes just before the 6-year anniversary of the Chinese couple in Wuhan who tested positive for Covid-19 and were hospitalized in Spallanzani: the beginning of the epidemic in Italy." We are not facing a new Covid", clarifies Nicastri. The one caused by Nipah, he explains, "is a highly contagious pathology that requires isolation and is self-limiting, that is, it is very serious. Among the health workers who admitted the first patients to hospital facilities in the first phase of the epidemiccarries the risk of infection.Outbreaks usually end with patient clinical outcomes, patient recovery or death.
