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Travel Health Advisory
Medical Alerts
Encephalitis
An outbreak of viral encephalitis in Bangladesh has claimed at least 20
lives. The outbreak is not, as some health officials feared, avian
influenza. Although this news is something of a relief in light of the
current avian flu outbreaks, encephalitis is a serious and deadly disease.
A WHO delegation will arrive to study the illness on February 5, 2004.
The first cases were reported in
Bangladesh in mid-January. Since then, sixty-six cases have been reported
in Rajbari district. Most patients are children.
Samples were sent to the United States for
testing, and laboratories confirmed that the cause of illness is Nipah
virus. This virus may be transmitted from infected pigs or bats.
The disease
Nipah virus is a
newly-diagnosed paramyxovirus. It causes a severe and rapidly progressive
encephalitis, or brain infection, with a high mortality rate. Of 94
patients studied during an outbreak in Malaysia in 1998/9:
SOS Analysis
Generally, travelers have a low risk of contracting Nipah encephalitis
when visiting Bangladesh.
As a precautionary measure, International SOS recommends that travelers
avoid the Rajbari district (in the southwest of Dhaka division). If travel
to that region is unavoidable, be sure to:
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Avoid contact with horses, pigs, and
bats
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Maintain high levels of personal hygiene
Source: contributed by
Dr. Wycoco, UN Physician
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