Lara Adejoro
As the mpox outbreak in Africa spreads, the Federal Government has intensified monitoring and screening procedures at all entry points in the country in response to the outbreak.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday signed by his Special Adviser on Media & External Relations, Tashikalmah Hallah.
The Africa Centre for Disease Control on Tuesday declared a public health emergency over the growing mpox outbreak on the continent.
The outbreak has swept through several African countries, particularly the Democratic Republic of Congo.
There is a serious and growing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that has now expanded outside the country. A new viral strain, which first emerged in September 2023, has, for the first time been detected outside DRC.
The World Health Organisation stressed that the emergence last year and rapid spread of a new virus strain in DRC, clade 1b, which appears to be spreading mainly through sexual networks, and its detection in countries neighbouring the DRC are especially concerning, and one of the main reasons for the declaration of the PHEIC.
So far, about 2,863 confirmed mpox cases and 517 deaths across 13 African countries have been reported in 2024 alone.
In Nigeria, cumulatively, a total of 39 confirmed cases and zero deaths have been recorded across 33 States and the FCT, from the beginning of the year 2024.
Mpox is a rare viral zoonotic infectious disease (i.e., disease of animals transmitted from animals to humans) that is endemic in several African countries including the tropical rainforests of Central and West Africa. The exact reservoir of the virus is still unknown, although rodents, squirrels,s and monkeys are suspected to play a part in transmission.
The mpox virus can spread both from animal to human and from human to human. Animal-to-human transmission may occur by direct contact with the blood, body fluids, skin, or mucosal lesions of infected animals (e.g., monkeys, squirrels, and rodents). This can happen through a bite, scratch, handling of, or eating inadequately cooked or other products of infected bushmeat. Human-to-human (person-to-person) transmission occurs when a person comes into contact with the virus from an infected human or materials contaminated with the virus, such as clothing or bedding.
Symptoms of the illness include fever, headache, body aches, weakness, swollen lymph nodes (glands), and a rash. After about one to three days of fever, the rash erupts, beginning on the face and then spreading to the body with the face and palms/soles being mostly affected. They can also occur in and around the genitals, which is why contact during sex is another mode of transmission.
“The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Muhammad Pate, emphasised that the country has intensified monitoring and screening procedures at all entry points in response to the threat of Mpox, Clade 1,” the statement read in part.
The minister stated that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Nigeria Ports Health Services, under the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, had been taking steps to fortify Nigeria’s defences before the declaration of mpox as a public health emergency.
“This Mpox Clade 1 strain has caused fatalities in up to 10 per cent of individuals who have fallen ill in previous outbreaks. He added that the aim is to tackle and mitigate its impact by deploying measures similar to those used during the COVID-19 pandemic,” he noted.
He further explained that the government had implemented a new mandate requiring all travellers to complete an online health declaration form before departing for the country.
“This measure is being introduced alongside the activation of infectious disease centres in all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory,” he added.
The minister also advised the public to practice good hygiene, frequent hand washing with soap and water, or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, especially after contact with an infected person or animal.
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