On 3 February 2026, the International Health Regulations National Focal Point (IHR NFP) for Bangladesh notified WHO of one confirmed case of Nipah virus (NiV) infection in Rajshahi Division. The patient developed fever and neurological symptoms on 21 January. Nipah virus infection was laboratory-confirmed on 29 January. The patient reported no travel history but had a history of consuming raw date palm sap. All 35 contact-persons are being monitored and have tested negative for NiV and no further cases have been detected to date. Bangladesh regularly has small NiV outbreaks, with cases reported at different times of the year, though outbreaks tend to occur between December and April corresponding with the harvesting and consumption of date palm sap. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in Bangladesh has implemented several public health measures. WHO assesses the overall public health risk posed by NiV to be low at the national, the regional and global level. The risk of international disease spread is considered low.

 

 

On 3 February 2026, the Bangladesh IHR NFP notified WHO of one confirmed case of NiV infection that occurred in Rajshahi Division, northwestern Bangladesh. The case was confirmed by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) testing on 29 January 2026.

 

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. Following the confirmed diagnosis, an outbreak investigation team, including One Health stakeholders, started investigations on 30 January.

 

A total of 35 contact persons has been identified, including three household contact persons 14 community contact persons and 18 hospital contact persons. Samples were collected from six symptomatic contact persons, including three from household, two from communities and one from hospital. All six samples tested negative for NiV infection by PCR and anti-Nipah IgM antibody detection by ELISA. As of 3 February, no additional cases have been identified. Contact persons are under monitoring.

 

Bangladesh reported its first case of NiV infection in 2001. Since then, human infections have been reported almost every year. In 2025, four laboratory-confirmed fatal cases were reported from Bangladesh.