FG Warns Against Handshake, Kissing As Meningitis Spreads To Lagos, Osun: Death Toll Hits 328

•FG WARNS AGAINST HANDSHAKE, KISSING TO CURTAIL ESCALATION

The death toll in the Cerebrospinal Meningitis scourge ravaging the country has risen to 328 with the scourge spreading to Lagos, Plateau and Osun states.

The Federal Ministry of Health, which confirmed the development through a public advisory made available to Sunday Tribune, however, announced an eight-point precaution to be strictly observed by Nigerians, as the authorities battled frantically against further escalation of the scourge.

The government urged Nigerians to reduce hand shaking, kissing, sharing utensils or medical interventions such as mouth resuscitation.

The other warnings included avoidance of self-medication, overcrowding, close and prolonged contact with a case(s); proper disposal of respiratory and throat secretions; strict observance of hand hygiene and sneezing into elbow joint/sleeves; vaccination with relevant sero-type of the meningococcal vaccine and for people to sleep in well-ventilated places.

The measures were contained in a public advisory from the Federal Ministry of Health entitled Cerebrospinal Meningitis (CSM) outbreak in Nigeria.

The ministry advised people not to panic, because the death toll and scourge might spread, stressing that the authorities in collaboration with all relevant agencies had stepped up efforts to arrest the problem.

“Although the cumulative number of people and locations affected may continue to increase, the actual rate of increase has begun to decline in some states indicating that the end of the epidemic is in sight.

“All public sector hospitals (secondary and tertiary hospitals) have been directed to provide free treatment for all Cases of Cerebrospinal Meningitis,” the ministry stated.

Under its case management and infection Prevention & Control (IPC) programme, the ministry said functional Isolation centers/units had been identified in all states and efforts in progress to strengthen them.

According to the government, antibiotics and management supplies available and being used as per protocol in all states for treatment, while the number of cases currently on admission or treated since the onset of the outbreak are being collated across the country, while a micro plan had been concluded in Zamfara State, worst-hit by the scourge, and where it all started in November 2016, for possible vaccination in week 14.

“Ninety Local Government Areas (LGAs) in 16 states of the Federation are so far affected, including Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Nassarawa, Jigawa, FCT, Gombe, Taraba , Yobe, Kano, Osun, Cross Rivers, Lagos and Plateau.

“The total number of people affected across these states is 2,524 with 328 deaths. So far, a total 131 samples have been confirmed in the Laboratory, out of which a majority are Neisseria Meningitides type C. This current outbreak started in Zamfara State in the 50th week of 2016 (i.e. November 2016),” it stated.

In an interview with newsmen, the Plateau State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Kunden Deyin, disclosed that Plateau has recorded five suspected cases of the ailment in Langtang South and Mikang local governments of the state.

The commissioner, who disclosed this in an interview in Jos, said the outbreak in the southern zone was received with shock adding the officials of the ministry of health and government agencies have been deployed to the affected communities to arrest the situation and to prevent it from spreading further.

He said the national policy on meningitis now stipulated that before any case is confirmed as being that of meningitis, a blood sample or cerebrospinal fluid must have been diagnosed at a government-approved medical laboratory.

The Federal Ministry of health had, in its public advisory, maintained that some of the other actions taken as of March 31, 2017, included constituting a CSM outbreak control team to coordinate all responses aimed at controlling the outbreak, which the membership include FMOH, NCDC, NPHCDA, WHO and other partners (MSF, UNICEF, CDC and EHealth Africa).

The other steps are regular coordination meetings while all the initial five states affected by the scourge had commenced Emergency Operation Centre EOC/EPR meetings, and the mapping of resources at state level to identify ongoing activities.

The government identified some challenges that had characterised the battle against the scourge to include low CSF collection rates (CSF sample versus reported cases); weak logistics for sample transportation for prompt laboratory diagnosis and weak coordination between SMOH surveillance officers and treatment Centres.

The government recalled that the worst CSM epidemics experienced in Nigeria occurred in 1996, when about 109,580 cases and 11,717 deaths were recorded, followed by the one in 2003 (4,130 cases and 401 deaths) then in 2008 (9,086 cases and 562 deaths) and in 2009, when 9086 cases and 562 deaths were recorded.

Lawmaker donates drugs to patients in Zamfara

In another development, the member representing Anka/Talata-Mafara Federal Constituency in Zamfara, Honourable Lawali Hassan, has donated drugs worth N1.8 million to the victims of meningitis outbreak in his constituency.

The lawmaker, who presented the items through his foundation, “Dan’iya Foundation,” said that his effort was aimed at complementing both the state and Federal Government’s efforts in tackling the menace.

Receiving the items, the secretaries of Talata-Mafara and Anka Emirate Councils, Alhaji Mu’azu Musa and Alhaji Aliyu Bango, respectively commended Hassan for his gesture, assuring the donor of judicious distribution of the drugs to the victims.