The Nigerian government says that since the beginning of the year, the country has recorded a total of 3,623 suspected cholera cases and 103 deaths in 187 local government areas (LGAs) in 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Director General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), Jide Idris, disclosed this on Tuesday during a press conference in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria.
He said the number of deaths translates to a cumulative fatality rate of 2.8 percent since the beginning of the year.
Mr Idris also noted that there had been a decline in the number of cases in the previous week.
“In this reporting week (July 8-14) the number of cases decreased by 5.6 percent compared to the previous week. We also recorded a drop in the case fatality rate from 2.9 percent to 2.8 percent,” he said.
Other diseases
Mr Idris said previous outbreaks had shown that the peak of the outbreak usually coincides with the peak of the rainy season, which is still several weeks away.
He noted that some northern states, typically designated as hotspots, have reported fewer cases, possibly attributed to the late onset of the rainy season in that region.
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He further said that the country is not only battling a cholera outbreak but is also seeing an increase in other dangerous diseases such as yellow fever, Lassa fever and meningitis.
Speaking about yellow fever, he said that three cases have been recorded.
“Currently, there are three presumptive positive cases reported in Ekiti (2) and Bayelsa (1) and one death,” Idris said.
Impact of the rainy season
He said rainfall has a significant impact on the spread of waterborne diseases, affecting both the quality and availability of water, adding that it can wash pathogens from soil, animal waste and sewage into rivers, lakes and other bodies of water, polluting them.
He noted that heavy rainfall can overwhelm sewer systems, causing untreated or partially treated wastewater to overflow into water supplies, further increasing the risk of contamination.
Flood waters often contain a harmful mix of rainwater, sewage, industrial waste and other pollutants, which can introduce pathogens into drinking water sources, he said.
He said floods can also displace populations, leading to overcrowding in shelters with inadequate sanitation facilities, increasing the risk of outbreaks of waterborne diseases.
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In addition, heavy rains and flooding can damage water treatment infrastructure, distributing contaminated water and compromising sanitation systems, allowing pathogens to spread.
Cholera response activities
Cholera is a food- and water-borne disease caused by the ingestion of Vibrio cholerae, usually through contaminated food and water.
Water is often contaminated by the feces of infected people, which can occur at the source, during transport, or during storage at home.
In addition, food can be contaminated through dirty hands during preparation or consumption, leading to the spread of disease.
Symptoms of cholera include acute, profuse, painless, watery diarrhea.
The agency said that as part of its response activities, it had distributed medical supplies for case management, infection prevention and control, and laboratories to all medical facilities in the country.
In addition, it has provided local and remote support to states such as Lagos and Ogun and has monitored daily reports and progress of response activities.
The agency also ensured ongoing training at subnational level for laboratory scientists on sample collection and analysis, as well as training of community mobilizers on key cholera messages.
Distribution of jingles, flyers and posters with key messages on cholera prevention to all states and the Federal Capital Territory.