Nigeria now meningitis-free – FG

Th e federal government has declared Nigeria free from the latest ‘Type C’ deadly Cerebrospinal Meningitis (CSM), which claimed 1,166 lives in the country since its outbreak in late 2016. Th e Chief Executive Offi cer of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, in a statement at the weekend, said with the decline in the cases, the 2016/2017 meningitis outbreak was over and the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) responding to the epidemic has been stepped down. He declared that the outbreak has been in constant decline for eight weeks and the aff ected states have recorded much fewer new cases.

“In the last four weeks, no local government area has reached outbreak alert threshold. By the 16th of June 2017 when the EOC was stepped down, a total of 14,518 suspected cases of meningitis were reported from 25 states, with 1,166 deaths, giving a case fatality rate of 8 per cent”, he said. He stated that NCDC, the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), and partner organisations worked assiduously to reduce the impact of the outbreak on aff ected communities, adding that the NCDC established a National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) which coordinated the national outbreak response.

Th is, he said, included the deployment of Rapid Response Teams (RRT) to the most aff ected States to strengthen surveillance, case management, laboratory capacity and risk communication. “Th e planning process to prevent future outbreaks and ensuring better preparedness for the next epidemic season has begun. Laboratory capacity has been improved with the recent operationalisation of the new National Reference Laboratory in Gaduwa, Abuja with support from the Federal Ministry of Health, the US CDC and the World Health Organisation. “NCDC is also coordinating a network of laboratories across the country to improve case confi rmation capacity. National guidelines towards responding to future outbreaks are being developed together with ongoing continuous awareness campaigns, keeping the general public informed. Workshops to improve preparedness are also being organised”, Ihekweazu said

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