A total of 10 people among 14 infected with the Nipah virus died in the country this year, making it the highest death toll from the infection in the last seven years.

Professor Dr Tahmina Shirin, director of the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR), provided the information in a press conference on Sunday.

Narsingdi recorded this year's first Nipah Virus patient as reported by IEDCR.

She said, "Nipah virus spreads through bat secretions or saliva. Consuming contaminated raw date palm sap can also lead to transmission of this virus. Infected individuals can transmit the virus to members of their families or healthcare workers.

But this year, for the first time, the virus has been detected in breast milk.

To prevent the spread of the Nipah virus, Professor Shirin advised against consuming raw date palm sap and not eating half-eaten fruits left exposed in the open.

She said, “We have emphasized on surveillance of Nipah virus. Even if someone survives after being infected with Nipah virus, various physical complications occur.”

According to IEDCR data, the first Nipah patient in Bangladesh was identified in Meherpur in 2001.