The National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) has revealed that diphtheria has killed 83 and infected 836 people as of July 27, 2023.
Lafiya360 reports that the states that have recorded confirmed cases of the disease are: Cross River, Kano, Katsina, Kaduna, Lagos, Osun, Yobe, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Diphtheria is a highly contagious vaccine-preventable disease caused by the bacterium Corynebacterium diphtheria, mainly spread through direct contact with an infected person or exposure to airborne droplets. It poses a severe risk to people of all ages, particularly our children.
The disease primarily affects the respiratory system, and symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat, neck swelling, and breathing difficulties. If left untreated, these symptoms can lead to death, with a higher risk for partially vaccinated or unvaccinated children in crowded and unsanitary areas.
The Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr. Faisal Shuaib made this known in Abuja, during a joint briefing on diphtheria outbreak.
He further disclosed that in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Health and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), it is collaborating with the affected state teams and other stakeholders to conduct intensified mass vaccinations for identified at-risk populations in the affected states, administering pentavalent and tetanus and diphtheria vaccines.
It, however, advised Nigerians to adhere to proper hygiene practices, which is crucial in preventing the spread of diphtheria. “Simple yet effective measures like hand hygiene, maintaining good cough etiquettes, environmental cleaning, eating nutritious balanced meals, isolating and quarantine of suspected cases can significantly reduce the risk of infection,” he said.
Dr. Faisal also expressed worry about the number of unvaccinated children despite the availability of vaccines in the country’s routine immunization schedule.
He said, “As many of you may have already heard, there is concern over the outbreak of Diphtheria cases across the country. From May 2022 to July 2023, an estimated 2,455 suspected cases has been reported in 26 states.
“As of July 27, 2023, 836 of these cases have been confirmed in 33 LGAs across 8 states: Cross River, Kano, Katsina, Kaduna, Lagos, Osun, Yobe, and FCT. Tragically, 83 deaths have been reported from these confirmed cases, making vaccination against this deadly disease critically important, especially for our children.
“Diphtheria is totally preventable through vaccination. In Nigeria, pentavalent vaccines are used to protect against diphtheria and are administered to children at 6 weeks, 10 weeks, and 14 weeks of age, with additional doses being given during campaigns.
“Despite the efforts of the Federal Government to provide safe and cost-effective vaccines, a significant number of children remain unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, compromising the country’s goal of achieving population immunity. Suboptimal vaccination coverage has been the main factor contributing to these outbreaks, with the most affected age group being those between 2-14 years.”
He added, “The response to the ongoing diphtheria outbreak will be carried out in two phases. Phase 1, the immediate response, will encompass 25 Local Government Areas (LGAs) across four States: Bauchi, Katsina, Yobe, and Kaduna. This phase is scheduled to begin on the 7th of August 2023 and will continue until the 11th of August 2023.
“The Phase 2 will cover outbreak response in 171 LGAs. Six States (Kano, Katsina, FCT, Yobe, Kaduna, and Bauchi) will have a state-wide outbreak response, while there will be targeted outbreak responses in LGAs across eight States: Jigawa (8 LGAs), Borno (4 LGAs), Osun (4 LGAs), Lagos (3 LGAs), Zamfara (3 LGAs), Gombe (3 LGAs), Plateau (1 LGA), and Nasarawa (1 LGA).
“This phase is planned to be conducted in three rounds. The first round will commence on 21st August 2023, followed by the second (2nd) and third (3rd) rounds tentatively set for 18th September 2023 and 16th October 2023, respectively. Each of these three rounds will span five days.
“The geographical areas to be covered in the response are depicted in the maps shared with you. The vaccination campaign will utilize both fixed and mobile teams.
“Parents and caregivers are therefore urged to take their children, from birth to 14 years, to nearby health facilities for vaccination with the pentavalent or Td vaccines and other age-appropriate vaccines.”
In his remarks, the Country Representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) Representative, Dr. Walter Mulombo, said, “This weekend, NCDC requested support from WHO for the deployment of 18 rapid response teams to support Bauchi, Kaduna and Katsina response. The deployment process is underway following the requested profile and a mix of the workforce from the Nigeria Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Programme (NFELTP), Avoc-SURGE and WHO staff will be used.
“WHO team is on the ground in Yobe and Kano, improving the surveillance at health facility and community level, supporting the active case search and supporting the decentralized isolation centers and referral to the state reference treatment centers, in alignment of State Ministry of Health request and NCDC guidance.
“WHO is supporting FCT in conducting an integrated Active Case Search and Household Sensitization in FCT optimizing the opportunity for the fIPV + nOPV2 RI intensification campaign.
“WHO is supporting the procurement of laboratory commodities to increase the result turnaround time to support the case definition and management at an early stage.
“WHO is working with NPHCDA to organize the first phase of a vaccination campaign targeting children from 0 to 14 years old in four states and WHO will support with 92 million naira.”