Nigeria recorded 24 new cases of Monkey pox in the last week of July, the latest epidemiological report of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has shown.
The new positive cases bring to 157, the number of persons that have contracted the disease between January 1 and July 31.
Out of the 24 cases, Ondo State has five; Lagos and Kano, three each; Abia, Adamawa, Bayelsa and Kwara, two each and Delta, Anambra, Gombe , Rivers and Nasarawa., one each.
The NCDC report further showed that between January and July 31, positive cases increased to 157. It added that four deaths had been recorded in four states – Lagos, Delta , Ondo and Akwa Ibom .
The report reads in part: ”From 1st January to 31st July 2022, there have now been 413 suspected cases and 157 confirmed cases (105 male, 52 female) from 26 states – Lagos (20), Ondo (14), Adamawa (13), Delta (12), Bayelsa (12), Rivers (11), Edo (eight), Nasarawa (eight), Plateau (six), Anambra (six), Federal Capital Territory (five ), Taraba (five), Kwara (five), Kano (five ), Imo (four), Cross River (three), Borno (three), Oyo ( three), Abia (three), Gombe (three), Katsina (two), Kogi (two ), Niger (one), Ogun (one), Bauchi (one) and Akwa Ibom (one).
“ From September 2017 to July 31st, 2022, a total of 12 deaths have been recorded in nine states – Lagos ( three), Edo (two), Imo (one ), Cross River (one ), FCT (one ), Rivers (one ), Ondo ( one ) Delta (one ) and Akwa Ibom (one ).”
The NCDC, however, said that it has enhanced surveillance at national and sub-national levels with improved case detection and reporting.
Meanwhile, the NCDC has said that two laboratories in Lagos and Abuja are adequate to meet the testing for Maburg disease in the country.
The facilities are the National Reference Laboratory in Abuja and the University of Lagos Teaching Hospital laboratory Centre for Human and Zoonotic Virology.
The NCDC had late last month said it was aware of the of the confirmation of an outbreak of Marburg (MVD) in Ghana by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
MVD is a hemorrhagic fever virus of the Filoviridae family and a member of the species Marburg marburgvirus, genus Marburgvirus. The virus is considered to be extremely dangerous.
NCDC Director-General Ifedayo Adetifa, told The Nation that some backup laboratories would come on stream in every state.
Adetifa said: “These (Abuja and Lagos) laboratories are strategically located and can cater to testing for other geopolitical zones.
“This includes skilled human resources and the availability of primers and reagents needed for testing.”
He explained that the centre was working with states to make sure that mechanisms are put in place for prompt sample collection.
“The COVID-19 pandemic provided an opportunity for the activation of at least one molecular laboratory in every state of the federation. These laboratories can be leveraged and activated for the testing of other infectious diseases including the Marburg Virus Disease,” the NCDC boss added.
