Diphtheria spreads to 8 states, leaves 83 dead, 836 infected
Nigeria is facing a serious health crisis as the country battles a diphtheria outbreak that has resulted in 83 fatalities and 836 confirmed cases since the start of the year.
The National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) has reported that an estimated 2,455 suspected cases have been identified in 26 states, with 33 local government areas across eight states being affected. The state are; Cross River, Kano, Katsina, Kaduna, Lagos, Osun, Yobe, and FCT.
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Speaking at a news briefing in Abuja, Executive Director of NPHCDA, Faisal Shuaib, stressed the critical importance of vaccination, especially for children. Despite the Federal Government’s efforts to provide safe and cost-effective vaccines, a significant number of children remain unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, hindering the achievement of population immunity.
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The response to the diphtheria outbreak will be carried out in two phases. Phase 1, scheduled from August 7 to August 11, will cover 25 local government areas in Bauchi, Katsina, Yobe, and Kaduna States.
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Phase 2 will address the outbreak in 171 local government areas. States like Kano, Katsina, FCT, Yobe, Kaduna, and Bauchi will have a state-wide outbreak response, while other states will receive targeted outbreak responses.
The vaccination campaign according to Faisal will target children from zero to 14 years old. Phase 1 will commence on August 21, followed by the second and third rounds tentatively set for September 18 and October 16, 2023, respectively. Each of these three rounds will span five days.
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The World Health Organization (WHO) Nigeria Country Representative, Walter Kazadi Mulombo, revealed that the WHO was requested by the NCDC to procure Diphtheria Antitoxin and erythromycin IV for case management. The WHO is working closely with NPHCDA to organize the first phase of vaccination and will provide support amounting to N92m.
UNICEF Nigeria Chief of Health, Eduardo Celades, highlighted that a concerning 70 percent of affected children were over two years old and that 80 percent of them were either unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated.
The diphtheria outbreak in Nigeria demands immediate action to prevent further fatalities and the spread of the disease. Vaccination remains the most effective tool to combat this deadly disease. The government, health agencies, and international organizations must work together to ensure the timely and successful implementation of the vaccination campaign to protect the nation’s children and achieve population immunity against diphtheria.
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