Rare Chandipura virus kills at least 16 in western India

At least 16 confirmed fatalities from the rare Chandipura virus have been registered in India’s western state of Gujarat, the region’s Health Minister Rushikesh Patel said.

“Three cases of Chandipura virus have come from other states. 50 cases of Chandipura virus have been reported in the entire state and 16 people have lost their lives,” the NDTV television quoted him as saying.

Earlier this week, the state’s authorities reported 29 cases and one fatality.

The virus is transmitted through bites of mosquitoes and ticks. It was first isolated in 1965, during an encephalitis outbreak in the village of Chandipura, state of Maharashtra.

Little is known about the disease. There is no specific treatment or vaccine against it. The Chandipura virus causes fever with symptoms that resemble influenza or acute encephalitis. Outbreaks of the Chandipura virus occur in India from time to time, but the disease has never been registered outside the country.

Outbreaks of the virus, with the fatality rate between 56% and 76%, were registered in central India in 2003-2004. The virus is particularly lethal in children.