Only awareness can save lives:Daily Sun

 Nipah virus, a serious infectious disease, breaks out in every winter in the country, especially in the northern part, and claims lives as there is no known antidote to the disease, experts said. People need to take preventive measure as most of the persons infected with Nipah virus die before getting treatment, they said. “Nipah virus generally breaks out in the country from December to March ev
ery year. It is being transmitted from bat through date juice. When bats take raw date juice from pot hung with date tree, Nipah virus spreads in the pot,” said Dr Benzir Ahmed, director (disease control) of the Directorate General of Health Services. “If people take this raw juice, then this virus spreads into human body and they will certainly be infected with the virus,” he added. “It is usually seen that bats bear the germs of Nipah virus. So, no raw date juice is now safe for people,” said Dr Benzir, adding that people should avoid raw date juice to keep them free from Nipah virus infection. Health experts of the country have advised people not to take raw date juice because 73 infected persons die being infected with the deadly virus. Dr Nasir Uddin, a public health expert, said Nipah virus is an infectious disease and can spread to humans through raw date juice contaminated by bats. “So the government needs to publish advertisements in print and electronic media as a part of creating public awareness to prevent Nipah virus infection as there is no specific medicine for the infectious disease,” he added. People can avoid Nipah virus through avoiding raw date juice, he said, adding that if raw date juice can be boiled and made into ‘gur’ (molasses), then it will be safe for human consumption and other use. Contacted, Director IEDCR (Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research National Influenza Centre) Dr Mahmudur Rahman said, “People infected with Nipah virus by taking raw date juice contaminated by bats die in most of the cases. Nipah virus broke out in the northern bordering part of the country in 2001. Since then 152 people were infected with this virus. Of them, 113 have died. Death rate in Nipah virus is much higher than any other flu in the country.” “This is an infectious disease and it can spread to human to human through contaminated raw date juice. So we are going to give advertisement in print and electronic media as a part of creating public awareness to prevent Nipah virus infection,” he added.