Monkeypox Cases Rise To 220 In Nigeria– NCDC
The Director General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Dr. Ifedayo Adetifa, said the Monkeypox cases in the country had risen to 220.
Dr. Adetifa made this known at the ministerial press briefing on COVID-19 and developments in the health sector held in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said the confirmed cases were recorded from 29 states in the country.
According to him, there were 530 suspected cases of Monkeypox and four deaths recorded in the country as of August 14, 2022.
Monkeypox is a rare viral zoonotic infectious disease (i.e. an infection transmitted from animals to humans) that occurs sporadically, primarily in remote villages of Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests.
Dr. Adetifa said the centre was looking into obtaining treatments as a key priority as an option to offer people who were at the highest risk of severe disease, hospitalisation and deaths.
He said, “We are also looking into obtaining treatments as a key priority so that we have an option to offer people who are at the highest risk of severe disease, hospitalisation and deaths.
“As we know the situation with monkeypox vaccine access is very topical, but there are not enough doses of vaccines. Potentially, a lot more more doses will become available but because of challenges with manufacturing factories and unexpected uptick in monkeypox cases, the vaccine may actually not be available until 2023.
“But given our own local epidemiology, we believe that looking for therapeutic options is the way to go.”
He noted that there are 220 confirmed cases from 530 suspected cases of Monkeypox and four deaths from 29 states in the country as of August 14, 2022.
The World Health Organisation declared Monkeypox a public health emergency of international concern on Saturday, July 23, 2022.
Adding, Adetifa said, “This means that there is now a need for coordinated and concerted international response given the unexpected and exponential rise in cases in countries that are not reporting monkeypox cases.
“Since the first of January 2022, 96 countries in the world have reported more than a total of 40,000 confirmed monkeypox cases including 12 deaths.
“In Nigeria, from the beginning of the year up to August 14, we have 220 confirmed cases from 530 suspected cases and four deaths from 29 states and we are continuing efforts to strengthen surveillance from the national and subnational levels to ensure that we actively conduct risk communication and community engagement.
