Ebola: Nigeria identifies two suspected cases and 53 contacts
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Leadership
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has identified two additional suspected Ebola cases and 53 primary contacts linked to the confirmed case in Abuja. Director-General Jide Idris announced the figure at a press briefing, as the authorities strengthen isolation and health monitoring, Leadership reports.
Nigeria has identified two additional suspected cases of Ebola virus disease and 53 primary contacts linked to the confirmed case in the Federal Capital Territory. Jide Idris, director-general of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, announced this on Sunday 25 October at a press briefing in Abuja, according to the NCDC.
The 53 contacts include 44 people already identified around the confirmed case, including health workers, patients, carers, travellers and the patient’s husband. The authorities have stepped up epidemiological surveillance, contact tracing and infection prevention measures at the facility where she was treated, according to the NCDC.
The confirmed infection is caused by the Bundibugyo strain, which is also responsible for the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The NCDC and the World Health Organization confirmed the strain after three levels of molecular analysis; no vaccine or specific treatment is currently licensed for this form of the disease, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control.
The announcement follows the confirmation of Nigeria’s first Ebola case, announced on 23 October. Nigeria had also reported on 22 October that the first case was detected after 13 days and asked hospitals to step up screening for Ebola virus disease.
