The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention stated on Tuesday that as of July 15, 2024, it had recorded 3,623 suspected Cholera cases and 103 deaths in 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
Dr. Jide Idris, Director General of the NCDC, said this at a press event in Abuja, stating that the current outbreak has extended to 187 local government areas, with a cumulative case fatality rate of 2.8% since the beginning of the year.
Idris reported that the most common age group afflicted was five years old, with males accounting for 52% of cases and females accounting for the remainder.
He did, however, indicate a 5.6% decrease in the number of cases during this reporting week (8th-14th July) when compared to the previous week.
“As of July 15, 2024, we have recorded 3,623 suspected cases and, unfortunately, 103 deaths across 34 states plus the Federal Capital Territory and 187 Local Government Areas, with a cumulative case fatality rate of 2.8 per cent since the beginning of the year. The predominant age affected is 5 years old while males account for 52 per centof cases and females account for the rest.
“Furthermore, there was a 5.6 per cent decline in the number of cases in this reporting week (8th -14th July) as compared to the preceding week. We also recorded a drop in the case fatality rate from 2.9 per cent to 2.8 per cent. Definitely, there is a decline in case fatality rate from week 24 when the spike started to the present week. Whereas ongoing current efforts at the national and some state levels might have been yielding some results and are largely responsible for the decline being reported, however, given the trend from previous years, we know it is not Uhuru yet.
“The trend analysis from previous outbreaks shows the peak of the outbreak usually coincides with the peak of the rainy season, which is still some weeks ahead. Also, some of the northern traditional hotspot states have been reporting fewer number of cases, which may be connected with the delayed onset of the rainy season in this part of the country,” he said.
He went on to say that, while practically every state in Nigeria had reported cases of cholera, there appeared to be an underreporting of the issue since required data from the states were not arriving in real time as expected, given past years’ trends.
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“This is largely due to inadequate resources to support surveillance and disease detection activities at the subnational level.
“Additionally this may likely be further complicated by the effect of political undertone for reporting cholera, which some see as a stigma or disease proxy indicator for the inability of the affected communities/persons to have access to potable water and other basic amenities of life,” he noted.
He stated that, in addition to the ongoing cholera outbreak in the country, there has been a considerable increase in the reported prevalence of other epidemic-prone diseases such as yellow fever, Lassa fever, and meningitis.
Idris stressed that the Federal Government, through the NCDC, had been actively reacting to the cholera outbreak, which had a severe impact on our country’s health and well-being.
