Kozhikode: Kerala has crossed a key stage in containing its latest Nipah case, with all identified close contacts completing their mandatory quarantine period without developing symptoms, Health Minister K. Muraleedharan said on Tuesday.

The state's lone Nipah patient, a 43-year-old man from Ramanattukara in Kozhikode district, remains on ventilator support at the Government Medical College Hospital. However, two sets of body fluid samples collected over the past week have tested negative for the virus. The minister said a medical board would decide the patient's further treatment.

Muraleedharan described the completion of quarantine by all listed contacts as a "major milestone" in the containment effort.

Contact tracing and surveillance prevent further spread

According to the Health Department, four people in the very high-risk category — including two family members of the patient and two healthcare workers — completed their 21-day quarantine on Tuesday without showing symptoms. Three people in the high-risk category and 24 in the low-risk category were also released from observation.

With this, everyone in the very high-risk and high-risk categories has completed quarantine. Only three people in the low-risk category remain under surveillance.

The minister said all 58 samples collected from people showing Nipah-like symptoms in Kozhikode district since June 10 had tested negative.

He attributed the containment to early diagnosis, accurate contact tracing and continuous surveillance. The state, he said, was able to manage the situation without declaring containment zones that could have disrupted people's movement and livelihoods.

Surveillance will continue according to protocol. The affected area can be declared Nipah-free after the mandatory 42-day observation period is completed.

Nipah is a zoonotic virus that spreads from animals to humans and, in some cases, between people. Fruit bats, also known as flying foxes, are its natural reservoir. The infection can cause severe respiratory illness and encephalitis and is associated with a high fatality rate.