Nigeria: COVID-19 Claims 11 Lives On Friday

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has disclosed that 11 patients died in Nigeria from coronavirus (COVID-19) on Friday.

The NCDC, which made this known via its verified website on Saturday morning, said the country’s fatality toll from the pandemic now stood at 2,211.

The agency added that the country logged 636 additional infections on Friday, 117 fewer than the 753 cases recorded on Thursday. COVID-19 cumulative cases now stand at 181,297.

According to the NCDC, the additional 636 infections were confirmed in 16 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Lagos State, the epicentre of the COVID-19 in Nigeria, recorded the lion share on Friday with 291 cases, followed by Rivers with 117 cases.

Taraba State registered 58;  Akwa Ibom 54; Kwara 28; Ekiti and  Ogun recorded 14 infections each.

The FCT recorded 13 new cases; Oyo State 11; Edo 9; Osun 6;  Bayelsa 5; Delta and Gombe 4 each; Abia and Plateau 3 each and Sokoto State 1.

The agency points out that a multi-sectoral national Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), activated at Level 2 is coordinating the national response activities.

The NCDC said that since the outbreak of the pandemic in Nigeria in February 2020, it had tested more than 2,589,130, samples for the disease.

It noted that 12,366 cases were still active in the country with many being managed at accredited isolation centres while others were being managed at home.

It disclosed that a total of 149 patients recovered from the disease and were discharged from various isolation centres on Friday.

The NCDC put the total recoveries nationwide since the onset of the pandemic at 166,709. (NAN)

479 Killed As Cholera Spreads To 18 States

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) disclosed this in it latest situation report.

It said since the beginning of this year, a total of 19,305 suspected cases have been recorded and that the disease has spread to 18 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The states were listed as Benue, Delta, Zamfara, Gombe, Bayelsa, Kogi, Sokoto, Bauchi, Kano, and Kaduna.

Others are Plateau, Kebbi, Cross River, Niger, Nasarawa, Jigawa, Yobe, Kwara and the FCT.

“As at July 11, 2021, a total of 19,305 suspected cases including 479 deaths (CFR 2.5%) have been reported from 18 states and FCT since the beginning of 2021.”

“Of the reported cases since the beginning of the year, 11.0% are aged 5 – 14 years. Of all suspected cases, 52% are males and 48% are females,” the report read.

The report said there has been an increase in the number of new cases in Bauchi, Kano Jigawa and Kwara.

According to the report, Cholera killed 31 people between July 5 and July 11, 2021.

Cholera is an acute diarrhoea disease caused by a bacteria called vibrio cholera. It is a potentially life-threatening, and primarily a water-borne disease.

Symptoms of the disease include nausea and vomiting , dehydration which can lead to shock, kidney injury and sudden death , passage of profuse pale and milky, watery stool (rice water coloured), and body weakness.

Monkeypox: NCDC Registers 59 Suspected Cases,15 Confirmed

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has registered 59 suspected cases of Monkeypox with 15 confirmed, its Director-General, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, said on Tuesday in Abuja.

Ihekweazu was reacting to the situation of Dallas, Texas resident, who recently returned from Nigeria and tested positive to the disease.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that it was the first confirmed case of the virus in the U.S. since 2003, with health officials saying that the public should not be concerned.

Laboratory tests confirmed that the patient was infected with a strain of the virus mainly seen in West Africa, which included Nigeria

“While rare, this case is not a reason for alarm and we do not expect any threat to the general public,” Dallas County Judge, Clay Jenkins, said in a statement by Dallas County’s health department.

With passengers wearing masks on the flight and in the airport, the health department said that the risk of spreading monkeypox via respiratory droplets to others on the planes and in the airports was low.

Ihekweazu told NAN that just as the agency responded to other epidemic prone diseases in the country, an outbreak would be declared when there was a large cluster of monkeypox cases that constituted an emergency.

“The Federal Government was notified of the situation in Texas, through the International Health Regulations (IHR), who reported a case of monkeypox disease diagnosed in a patient who had recently visited Nigeria.

“Since the re-emergence of monkeypox in the country in September 2017, the agency has continued to receive reports and responses to sporadic cases of the disease from states across the country.

“We have been working closely with state health ministries to strengthen monkeypox disease surveillance and response in the country.

“We work with Enhanced Monkeypox Surveillance Project where we have been training health workers across states to rapidly detect and manage cases.

“Our initial focus is on the states with the highest number of cases – Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and Lagos.

“We will continue working with all states to strengthen monkeypox prevention, detection and control in Nigeria,” he explained.

He urged Nigerians to continue adhering to precautions that protected them from monkeypox and other infectious diseases.

“If you feel ill or have a sudden rash, please visit a hospital for diagnosis and management,” he advised.

NAN recalls that Monkeypox, which is in the same family of viruses as smallpox, is a rare but potentially deadly viral infection that begins with flu-like symptoms and progresses to a rash on the face and body.

It tends to last two to four weeks. People who do not have symptoms are not capable of transmitting the virus.

Monkeypox infections of that strain are fatal in about one in 100 people, affecting those with weakened immune systems more strongly. (NAN)

Nigeria risks fresh Ebola outbreak- NCDC

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says Nigeria is at a “moderate risk” of a fresh outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) had certified Nigeria free of the disease on October 20, 2014, after Patrick Sawyer, a Liberian imported the disease to the country.

The virus had claimed lives in Nigeria, including that of Dr Stella Adadevoh, who treated Sawyer and prevented him from leaving the Lagos hospital where he was admitted.

In an update on its website, NCDC said a fresh outbreak of the disease is likely owing to the proximity of Nigeria to Guinea, where there are currently Ebola cases.

The NCDC said it has an existing multi-sectoral National Emerging Viral Haemorrhagic Diseases Working Group (EVHDWG), which coordinates preparedness efforts for viral haemorrhagic diseases.

“The EVHDWG has carried out a risk assessment on the possibility of transmission of the virus to Nigeria,” NCDC said in its update.

Given the proximity of Guinea to Nigeria and other West African countries as well as other indicators, Nigeria has been placed at moderate risk of an EVD outbreak.

“The outputs from this risk assessment are being used to initiate preparedness activities in-country.

The agency assured that several measures had been put in place to prevent and mitigate the impact of a potential EVD outbreak in Nigeria.

“A National Emergency Operations Centre operating from NCDC’s Incident Coordination Centre is on alert mode.

“We have a team of first responders on standby, ready to be deployed within 24 hours in the event of an EVD outbreak in Nigeria.

“We have also established testing capacity for EVD at the NCDC National Reference Laboratory. The NCDC will continue working with states to strengthen preparedness activities across the country.”

Chikwe Ihekweazu, Director General of NCDC, assured Nigerians that the agency is monitoring developments closely.

He said the NCDC will work with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency to develop a clear plan for accessing Ebola vaccines.

“The NCDC will continue to monitor the situation and initiate preparedness activities across the country.
“We are in close contact with WHO, ACDC and WAHO for cross-border coordination. We urge members of the public to remain aware of the risks and adhere to all safety measures.

“The NCDC remains fully committed to protecting the health of all Nigerians from infectious disease threats,” he said.

The development comes at a time Nigeria is in the thick of COVID-19 outbreak. The country has hit the 150,000 mark of Coronavirus cases.