Symptoms and Treatment of Nipah Virus

Symptoms of Nipah Virus

Initial symptoms of nipah virus may include:

  • Fever.
  • Headache.
  • Breathing difficulties.
  • Cough and sore throat.
  • Diarrhea.
  • Vomiting.
  • Muscle pain and severe weakness.
  • No symptoms – some people have none at all.

Symptoms typically begin within four to 14 days after exposure to the virus. It’s common to have a fever or headache first and develop respiratory problems like cough and difficulty breathing later.

In severe cases people develop brain infection (encephalitis), which is life-threatening.

Other severe symptoms can include:

  • Confusion and disorientation.
  • Slurring speech.
  • Seizures.
  • Coma.
  • Respiratory distress.

Treatment of Nipah Virus

As of 2020, there is no specific treatment for Nipah virus infection. The main treatment is supportive care.

The initial case in human outbreaks of Nipah virus has always been zoonotic from exposure to contaminated secretions or tissues of infected bats or pigs. Human-to-human transmission of Nipah virus occurs by close contact with infected persons or exposure to infected body fluids, for examples blood, urine, nasal secretions.