WHO reports unusual increase in cases of ditptheriain Nigeria

Geneva, Switzerland (PANA) -The WHO said in a release issued Thursday that Nigeria has recorded an unusual increase in cases of diphtheria across several states.

"From 30 June to 31 August 2023, a total of 5,898 suspected cases were reported from 59 Local Government(LGAs) in 11 states.

"In week 34 (ending 27 August 2023), 234 suspected cases have been reported from 20 LGAs in five states, with one Lab confirmed case1 from the 22 samples collected," it said, adding that 18 of these cases were epidemiologically linked and 141 were classified as clinically compatible.

Diphtheria is a highly contagious vaccine-preventable disease caused mainly by the bacteria Corynebacterium diphtheriae which can be fatal in 5-10% of cases, with a higher mortality rate in young children.

"WHOs most recent risk assessment of the diphtheria outbreak in Nigeria has maintained the risk as high at the national level, and low at the regional and global levels.
"Public health measures such as vaccination response, enhanced surveillance for early case detection, case management and risk communication coordinated by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), in collaboration with WHO and other partners, are being implemented in response to the outbreak," it stated.
-0- PANA RA 14 Sept2023.