Nipah Virus Alert.

Though no case of Nipah Virus has been detected in Pakistan as of now, a timely advisory issued by the National Institute of Health (NIH) is the right step to inform all relevant departments as well as the public of the risk factors. Vigilance is the first precautionary measure we have to adopt as a nation to avoid and manage any possible outbreak of the virus. Though the possibility is low, as elaborated by the NIH, since the virus outbreak has struck India, it is high time we remain cautious and alert.

We are a country with limited economic and healthcare resources, and the Nipah virus is deadly with a mortality rate that is strikingly more than 70%. The virus transmits from fruit bats to humans, in our part of the region. In Malaysia and Singapore, however, where the first known Nipah virus outbreak occurred, the transmission was from pigs to humans. Nipah's human: to: human transmission risk is comparatively low. But border alerts are essential because the virus has affected India's Kerala state. For Kerala, it is not the first but the fourth outbreak of the virus.

Prior to the NIH advisory, Punjab and Sindh health departments issued respective letters to all hospitals as well as livestock departments, in the first week of...