Nigeria has recorded 21 confirmed monkeypox cases across nine states and one death since January 2022, said the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) late on Sunday.
In a report released by the NCDC, the health agency said the country has recorded 66 suspected monkeypox cases across more than 20 states this year, and Nigeria’s “risk of exposure to the monkeypox virus was high based on the recent risk assessment conducted.”
The report said the one death of the confirmed cases was reported in a 40-year-old patient who had underlying co-morbidity and was on immunosuppressive medications.
A rapid increase of suspected cases was recorded in May, when there were 20 new suspected cases from 11 states, a 100 percent increase in case reporting as compared with April, when 10 new cases were reported, said the report.
It is “likely due to ongoing efforts to increase awareness and improve surveillance”, it said, adding the NCDC has activated a national multisectoral emergency operations center for monkeypox to strengthen and coordinate ongoing response activities in-country while contributing to the global response.
The NCDC was notified by health authorities in Britain about a case of exported monkeypox from Nigeria in early May, said the report.—AFP
