Amid a cholera outbreak in Nigeria, the NCDC has issued a warning of an increase in yellow fever cases.
The NCDC provided cautionary notice concerning a surge in yellow fever cases that runs parallel to the present cholera outbreak which has spread across virtually all states of Nigeria.
The Director-General of the NCDC, Dr. Jide Idris, delivered a cautionary statement during a press briefing in Abuja on Tuesday.
According to Idris, NCDC has been effectively handling a cholera outbreak that has impacted 187 Local Government Areas and spread across the Federal Capital Territory as well as 34 states since June.
As per his statement, Nigeria has reportedly registered 3,623 cholera cases and a death toll of 103 until July 15th. The case fatality rate stands at 2.8 percent as well.
It was stated by him that there has been a minor decrease in the number of reported cases and deaths during the previous week. He credited this progress to continuous national and state-level initiatives.
However, he warned that the apex of the wet season – a time when cholera outbreaks tend to worsen- was yet to come.
Idris expressed that there were worries about insufficient resources for surveillance and a negative political perception of the ailment, both of which could contribute to underreporting.
According to him, during the rainy season especially, there has been a concerning increase in yellow fever cases as reported by the agency.
One death and three presumptive positive cases have been confirmed, with two in Ekiti state and one in Bayelsa.
He stated that yellow fever, a disease caused by infected mosquitoes and characterized by symptoms including fever, chills, headache, back pain, body aches and jaundice.
Idris emphasized that the most effective way to prevent yellow fever is through vaccination, which provides lifelong immunity.
The public was encouraged by him to get vaccinated, employ mosquito repellents, don protective clothing and eradicate stagnant water in order to diminish the breeding sites for mosquitoes.
He believes that heavy rainfall and flooding have a significant impact on the proliferation of waterborne illnesses such as cholera and yellow fever.
