According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), between September 5 and October 2, 2022, 4,153 Cholera illnesses were reported. On Wednesday, the NCDC released a statement on its official website indicating that 80 people nationwide passed away in September as a result of cholera. The agency also revealed that 256 persons from 31 states have passed away from cholera since the year 2022 began.
The agency disclosed that: “Thirty-one states have reported suspected cholera cases in 2022. These are Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ekiti, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara.
“In the reporting month (September 5 to October 2, 2022), nine states reported 4,153 suspected cases – Borno (2,626), Yobe (718), Gombe (317), Zamfara (212), Bauchi (119), Jigawa (95), Sokoto (47), Katsina (16) and Adamawa (three).
“As of October 2, 2022, a total of 10,745 suspected cases, including 256 deaths (CFR 2.4 per cent), have been reported from 31 states. Of the suspected cases since the beginning of the year, the age group, five to 14 years, is the most affected for males and females. Of all suspected cases, 48 per cent are males and 52 per cent are females.
“There was a 42 per cent increase in the number of new suspected cases in September – Epi Week 36 – 39 (4,153) – compared with August Epi Week 31 – 35 (2,428).
“In the reporting week, Borno (883), Gombe (97), Bauchi (15) Yobe (eight) and Sokoto (three) reported 1,006 suspected cases. Borno and Gombe states accounted for 97 per cent of 1,006 suspected cases reported in Week 39″.
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The NCDC said that the Cumulative Epi-Summary is still being monitored by the National Multi-Sectoral Cholera Technical Working Group. It was stated that Vibrio cholerae infection of the bowel is what causes cholera, an acute diarrheal sickness.
It states that individuals may become ill if they consume food or water that has been contaminated with cholera germs. According to the organisation, the infection is frequently minor or symptomless but can occasionally be serious and life-threatening.
It added that: “About one in 10 people with cholera will experience severe symptoms, which, in the early stages, include: profuse watery diarrhoea, sometimes described as ‘rice-water stools, vomiting, thirst, leg cramps and restlessness or irritability’”.
When examining a patient who has copious watery diarrhoea, healthcare professionals should search for indicators of dehydration, according to the NCDC. Among them is a quick heartbeat, thinning of the skin, dry mucous membranes, and low blood pressure. Also mentioned was the possibility of severe dehydration, which can result in renal failure, in cholera patients.
It said that: “If left untreated severe dehydration can lead to shock, coma, and death within hours”.
According to specialists in public health, there is no end in sight to Nigeria’s struggle with periodic cholera outbreaks because the WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) standards in the nation are still subpar.
According to a recent research on Nigeria’s sanitation, hygiene, and water conditions, 83% of household members do not have access to even the most basic hygiene services. According to the report, 90% of the population of the country lacks access to all necessary water, sanitation, and hygiene services. This highlights the poor state of the country’s WASH sector.
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