Omowunmi Semudara
The Federal Government of Nigeria has revealed that 15,060 suspected cases of diphtheria infections were recorded in the country as of 19th October.
The Director General of NCDC, Ifedayo Adetifa, while speaking at a press briefing in Abuja said children between the ages of 1-14 recorded the highest number of diphtheria infections – 6,777 which was 71.5 percent.
Adetifa stated that out of which 9,478 were confirmed cases from 137 LGAs in 20 States including the FCT.
He further gave the breakdown of the disease spread by states as follows: Kano – 7,747 (81.7%), Yobe – 841, Bauchi – 369, Katsina – 275, Borno – 164, Jigawa -24, Kaduna – 18, Lagos – 8, Zamfara -7, FCT – 7, Lagos – 6, Gombe – 5, Sokoto – 4, Osun – 3, Niger – 2, Cross River, Enugu, Imo, Nasarawa, Kebbi, Taraba – 1 eachThe DG said that out f the 9,478 confirmed cases, 6,777 (71.5 percent) were aged 1-14 years, Infants: – 1 percent 1-4 years: 14.1 percent , 5-9 years: 30.6 percent 10-14 years: 26.8 percent, Adults – 20 years: 16 percent”.
Adetifa said that finalisation of the development of the National Diphtheria Laboratory guidelines is underway.
According to him, preparations for the sequencing of diphtheria isolates are also being finalised.With regard to risk communication and community engagement, Adetiba said thatNCDC will continue to develop and disseminate public health advisories on diphtheria.
“With the support of the World Bank, Breakthrough Action Nigeria and other partners we have been able to design, validate and distribute diphtheria social behavioural change (SBC) materials to all states.”
“We are currently airing diphtheria jingles and PSA on Radio Nigeria’s 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. national network news. “We continue to engage with state officials on the adaptation of diphtheria SBC materials (e-posters, flyers and jingles) to their local languages.“We embark on regular media engagement such as this to proactively inform the public on raising awareness and addressing misconceptions about the diphtheria outbreak.”
He also mentioned that School heads on diphtheria prevention and control measures in communities have been engaged in Kano state.
” the state governments, the primary and secondary school authorities, community and religious leaders in high-burden states have been engaged in diphtheria prevention and control measures” he said.
NCDC DG further said NCDC continue to conduct social listening on social media channels to address misinformation and disinformation on diphtheria.Inaddition, Adetiba said the Centre has developed and disseminated Standard Operating Procedures for Diphtheria Antitoxin (DAT) use in health facilities and treatment centres.
Speaking at the briefing, the Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Faisal Shuaib said a total of 1,692,762 children, between six months to four years of age, have been diligently administered the Pentavalent vaccine—a vital safeguard against this disease.
Shuaib said in addition, an impressive 3,166,419 children aged four to 14 years have received the TD vaccines, further strengthening the country from the disease among children and teenagers.
“Phase two, round one of our outbreak response using diphtheria vaccines commenced on 23 September and has unfolded in seven states, encompassing 56 LGAs that are profoundly impacted by the ongoing outbreak. The reach and impact of this concerted effort have been nothing short of remarkable.”
Shuaib said Kano state has exemplified its commitment to this cause, ensuring the immunisation of 1,111,310 children with Td vaccines and 544,737 children with Pentavalent vaccines in phase 2.
He said Katsina, another hotspot in this outbreak, has vaccinated 403,252 children with Td vaccines and 255,075 children with Pentavalent vaccines.
“Similarly, Kaduna, Bauchi, Borno, Jigawa, and Yobe have not faltered in their efforts either, collectively securing the health and well-being of hundreds of thousands of children through dedicated vaccination campaigns, ” he added.
