Bangladesh offficials report one confirmed case of Nipah virus (NiV) infection in Rajshahi Division.
According to the WHO, the patient is female, aged between 40-50 years, residing in Naogaon District, Rajshahi Division. She developed symptoms consistent with NiV infection on 21 January, including fever, headache, muscle cramps, loss of appetite (anorexia), weakness, and vomiting, followed by hypersalivation, disorientation, and convulsion. On 27 January, she became unconscious and was referred by a local physician to a tertiary hospital. She was admitted on 28 January, and the Nipah surveillance team collected throat swabs and blood samples. The patient died the same day.
The patient reported repeated consumption of raw date palm sap between 5 and 20 January 2026.
This is the first NiV case/death of 2026. In 2025, four laboratory-confirmed fatal cases were reported from Bangladesh.
Since 2001, the Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) in Dhaka has reported 348 Nipah virus infections, including 250 deaths, for a case fatality of 71.8 percent.
India health officials: Only two Nipah Virus cases reported in West Bengal