Deadly Brain-Damaging Virus Outbreak in India

 

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.

An outbreak of a brain-destroying virus is currently happening in the Kerala state of India.

The number of people who have died from Nipah is relatively¹ small. Officials from India’s Ministry² of Health and Family Welfare said in a statement to the press that this is not a “major outbreak” and is only a “local occurrence.” They cannot confirm the origin of the outbreak. But they can confirm that it is spreading between humans.

So far, the Nipah virus has killed more than a dozen people. The victims include a 31-year old nurse in Kerala. Lini Puthussery was part of a team treating the first Nipah patients. She was also a wife and the mother of two young children. Her body was cremated⁴ quickly so the infection would not spread.

Health officials are most concerned about the high mortality rate of the disease. The World Health Organization (WHO) lists the Nipah virus as a developing disease that could cause a global pandemic. Ebola and Zika are also on this list.

Symptoms of Nipah

Those who contract Nipah show signs of the disease quickly. Early signs include fever, sleepiness, vomiting⁵ and mental confusion.

An infected person may also suffer from a cough or have difficulty breathing. As the disease progresses, signs often include uncontrollable shaking and encephalitis, or swelling⁶ of the brain.

Experts at the WHO say these symptoms can progress to a coma⁷ within 24-48 hours.

Transmission

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States explains on its website that “transmission of Nipah virus to humans may occur after direct contact with infected bats, infected pigs, or from other NiV (Nipah virus) infected people.”

The WHO includes all animals in its explanation. “Nipah virus can be transmitted to humans from animals (such as bats or pigs), or contaminated foods and can also be transmitted directly from human-to-human.”

Brief History

The CDC explains that the Nipah virus is named for a village in Malaysia. Nipah was first discovered there in 1999. At that time, the virus mostly infected pig farmers and those who had contact with pigs. At least 300 people in Malaysia and Singapore were infected, and more than 100 people died.

The CDC adds that, to control that outbreak, officials killed more than one million pigs. In this outbreak bats infected pigs and then pigs infected humans. There was no occurrence of person-to-person transmission in this outbreak.

However, in Bangladesh and India the CDC states that person-to-person transmission is “regularly reported.”

Its site adds that this “is most commonly seen in the family and caregivers of Nipah virus-infected patients.” In this area, people can also get Nipah from contact with infected bats.

The Science News website reports that there was a Nipah outbreak in Bangladesh from 2001 to 2007. People caught the disease after drinking contaminated fruit fluids that virus-carrying bats had also drank.

There is no cure for Nipah or vaccine⁸ to protect against it.

And that’s the Health & Lifestyle report. I’m Anna Matteo.

Words in This Story

mortality – n. the number of deaths in a given time or place

cremate³ – v. to burn (the body of a person who has died)

contract – v. to become ill with (a disease)

pandemic – n. an occurrence in which a disease spreads very quickly and affects a large number of people over a wide area or throughout the world

occurrence – n. something that happens

contaminate – v. to make (something) dangerous, dirty, or impure⁹ by adding something harmful or undesirable¹⁰ to it

encephalitis – n. medical inflammation of the brain that is caused especially by infection with a virus (such as herpes simplex or West Nile virus) or less commonly by bacterial¹¹ or fungal infection or autoimmune reaction

coma – n. a state in which a sick or injured person is unconscious for a long time

transmission – n. the act or process by which something is spread or passed from one person or thing to another

vaccine – n. a substance that is usually injected into a person or animal to protect against a particular disease

1 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

2 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

3 cremate   

v.火葬，烧成灰

参考例句：

• She wants Chris to be cremated.她想把克里斯的尸体火化。
• Laowang explains: "Combustion is cremate, degenerating is inhumation. "老王解释道：“燃烧就是火葬，腐朽就是土葬。”

4 cremated   

v.火葬，火化（尸体）( cremate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He wants to is cremated, not buried. 他要火葬，不要土葬。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The bodies were cremated on the shore. 他们的尸体在海边火化了。 来自辞典例句

5 vomiting   

吐

参考例句：

• Symptoms include diarrhoea and vomiting. 症状有腹泻和呕吐。
• Especially when I feel seasick, I can't stand watching someone else vomiting." 尤其晕船的时候，看不得人家呕。”

6 swelling   

n.肿胀

参考例句：

• Use ice to reduce the swelling. 用冰敷消肿。
• There is a marked swelling of the lymph nodes. 淋巴结处有明显的肿块。

7 coma   

n.昏迷，昏迷状态

参考例句：

• The patient rallied from the coma.病人从昏迷中苏醒过来。
• She went into a coma after swallowing a whole bottle of sleeping pills.她吃了一整瓶安眠药后就昏迷过去了。

8 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

9 impure   

adj.不纯净的，不洁的；不道德的，下流的

参考例句：

• The air of a big city is often impure.大城市的空气往往是污浊的。
• Impure drinking water is a cause of disease.不洁的饮用水是引发疾病的一个原因。

10 undesirable   

adj.不受欢迎的，不良的，不合意的，讨厌的；n.不受欢迎的人，不良分子

参考例句：

• They are the undesirable elements among the employees.他们是雇员中的不良分子。
• Certain chemicals can induce undesirable changes in the nervous system.有些化学物质能在神经系统中引起不良变化。

11 bacterial   

a.细菌的

参考例句：

• Bacterial reproduction is accelerated in weightless space. 在失重的空间，细菌繁殖加快了。
• Brain lesions can be caused by bacterial infections. 大脑损伤可能由细菌感染引起。