Nigeria records 21 fresh cases of Monkeypox, one death

•Activates national multi-sectoral emergency operations

Twenty-one cases of Monkeypox disease have been recorded this year.

Of the number, 15 incidents were captured as of April 30, 2022, while the other six happened between that time and May 29.

Consequently, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has activated a national Multi-sectoral Emergency Operations Centre for Monkeypox (MPX-EOC) at Level 2 to strengthen and coordinate ongoing response activities in-country.

In a statement in Abuja, Director General of NCDC, Dr. Ifedayo Adetifa, noted that genomic surveillance was ongoing at the centre’s National Reference Laboratory in Abuja, and had been confirmed to be caused by the West African clade Monkeypox virus.

He explained that the measure followed the report of a preliminary risk assessment done by a group of subject matter experts from the NCDC, relevant government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and partner agencies.

Adetifa stated: “As of May 29, 2022, a total of 21 confirmed cases with one death had been reported from nine states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) – Adamawa (5); Lagos (4); Bayelsa (2); Delta (2); Cross River (2); FCT (2); Kano (2); Imo (1) and Rivers (1).

“The death was reported in a 40-year-old patient, who had underlying co-morbidity and was on immunosuppressive medications.”

NCDC said genomic surveillance is ongoing at its National Reference Laboratory in Abuja and so far, all of the cases have been confirmed to be caused by the West African clade Monkeypox virus. The May 2022 Monkeypox situation report can be assessed,” he added.

NCDC, however, stressed that the public should be aware of the risk associated with pox and adhere to public health safety measures.