Last January, two new cases of infection were reported Nipah Virus (NiV)in two healthcare workers in the state of West Bengal, India. The episode is the latest in a series of recurring outbreaks starting from 2018 in the Kerala region, also in Indian territory. This zoonoses (infectious disease that is transmitted from animal to man) is widespread in South East Asia in India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore. It is transmitted to humans by fruit bats and other animals, but person-to-person transmission or through contaminated food can also occur. It causes encephalitis, neurological symptoms, but can also affect the lungs. The mortality rate is estimated between 40% and 75%.
Already included inlist of top 10 diseases monitored in the Research and Development Blueprint, the presence of several outbreaks of infection and recurrent epidemics since the 2000s in various regions of South-East Asia has made it necessary for the World Health Organization (WHO) to publish a “Regional Strategy for South-East Asia for the prevention and control of Nipah virus infection, 2023-2030” containing guidelines to control and contain epidemics. To date, the risk of transmission in Italy and Europe is very lowhowever, considering that in a globalized way diseases can also spread rapidly, factors such as: vaccine research, the development of early detection systems and the rapid exchange of information at the international level thanks to bodies such as the WHO remain fundamental for the fight against epidemics.
The Nipah outbreak in Bengal
The WHO, in January 2026, confirmed two cases of Nipah virus (NiV) infection in the state of West Bengal, India. The two patients, affected by severe symptoms, are both healthcare workers who work in the same private hospital in Barasat. Local authorities have traced and tested further 190 contactswhich all turned out negative to the virus and no further cases have been detected.
It’s about the third outbreak registered in this area of India with precedents dating back to 2001 and 2007.
What it is, how it is transmitted and why it is called Nipah
It is a virus RNAfor the more experienced a Paramyxovirus. The natural hosts, which transmit the virus but are immune to it, are the fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family, the so-called flying foxes, widespread in most of the regions of the western Pacific, south-east and southern Asia, in Madagascar, throughout Africa and in some areas of the Middle East.
The virus can be transmitted from bat to human, from human to human and, in rarer cases, from bat to pig (intermediate host) to human. Contagion can occur through consumption of contaminated food from infected urine, droppings or saliva of bats, especially fruit that has not been adequately washed, or by direct contact. More rarely it spreads between people by direct contact with respiratory secretions or body fluids, for example within the same family unit or in a healthcare facility if strict disinfection protocols are not observed.
It is considered an emerging disease and, as with other viruses, its spread can be favored by the loss of natural habitats which push many species of wild animals to come into contact with anthropized environments or with food resources linked to human presence, thus favoring phenomena of spillover (the “species jump”) from animal to man.
The denomination Nipah comes from the name of a village in Malaysia, Sungai Nipahwhere the virus was first isolated between 1998 and 1999 during an epidemic with symptoms of severe encephalitis in several patients in the village.
Symptoms of NiV disease
It is not easy to distinguish NiV from other infectious forms or from other types of encephalitis or pneumonia and for this reason rapid and specific laboratory tests. The phase of incubation ranges from 4 to 21 days and it has been calculated that infected individuals remain contagious for 21 days after the development of symptoms.
Early symptoms include feverheadache, dizziness and vomiting. Then neurological symptoms or respiratory problems such as difficulty breathing or coughing occur. In severe cases, acute encephalitis occurs. Mortality is high, but most people who survive recover completely from symptoms.
How dangerous is the Nipah virus: very low risk for Italy
In the epidemics documented so far (in Bangladesh, India, Malaysia and Singapore), the mortality rate ranged from 40% to 75% but the WHO assesses the risk as moderate at the local (sub-national) level e Bass globally.
The danger is mainly linked to two factors, the mlack of care and the management difficulties. The variability of mortality depends greatly on the local capacity to carry out a early diagnosis and to manage clinical complications (often respiratory and neurological) in intensive care.
There are no documented cases outside of India and, as reported in a press release from the Ministry of Health, the words of Maria Rosaria Campitiello, Head of the Department of Prevention, Research and Health Emergencies put the brakes on alarmism.
The risk of transmission in Italy is very low in line with international assessments, and in line with other countries, no travel restrictions are foreseen or necessary
Care, treatment and prevention
To date There is no vaccine for this disease yethowever some experimental vaccines have already passed initial tests and others are progressing towards human trials.
As also reported in the WHO guidelines, it is good first of all limit sources of infection and observe hygiene rules:
- fruit must be washed and peeled before eating it to avoid any contamination in the areas where the virus is present;
- they must be worn gloves and protective clothing in the presence of sick animals, particularly pigs, and during slaughter and killing procedures.
- in the areas where the virus is present, orchards, stables and feed and food warehouses are protected by the presence of fruit bats;
- good hand hygiene is always important;
- in the healthcare sector, the use of devices such as masks, gowns and infected patients must be isolated.
The virus is inactivated at a temperature of 100°C for more than 15 minutes and disinfectants such as 80% ethanol and 10% sodium hypochlorite are effective and can be a valid support for disinfection.
