The Director, Kaduna State College of Health Science, Nurudden Bello, says all hands must be on deck to support both federal and state governments to raise awareness on preventive measures against monkeypox.
Bello, a microbiologist, made the call in Kaduna on Thursday while sensitizing students on ways to halt the spread of the
disease in the country.
Monkeypox is an infectious viral disease that can occur in both humans and some other animals, mostly seen in central and western Africa.
It is called monkeypox because it was first identified in laboratory monkeys.
The viral zoonosis (a virus transmitted to humans from animals) has similar symptoms to those seen in smallpox patients such as fever, headache, muscle pains and shivering.
An ongoing outbreak of monkeypox was confirmed on May 6, beginning with a British resident who, after travelling to
Nigeria, presented symptoms consistent with monkeypox on April 29. The resident returned to the UK on May 4, creating the country’s index case of the outbreak.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control in its latest report on monkeypox, said the country recorded six cases and one death in May.
The centre said that Nigeria’s risk of exposure to the monkeypox virus was high, based on recent risk assessment it conducted.
The NCDC, in its latest epidemiological summary on monkeypox published on May 29 noted that since January 2022,
Nigeria had continued to report sporadic cases of the disease.
According to it, this year, as of May 29, a total of 21 confirmed cases with one death have been reported from nine states and the FCT – Adamawa (5), Lagos (4), Bayelsa (2), Delta (2), Cross River (2), FCT (2), Kano (2), Imo (1), and Rivers (1).
It stated that one death was reported in a 40-year-old patient who had underlying co-morbidity and was on immunosuppressive medications.
The NCDC said that among the 21 cases reported so far, there had been no evidence of any new or unusual transmission of the virus, nor changes in its clinical manifestation documented (including symptoms, profile and virulence).
The Kaduna college of science director, therefore, urged Nigerians, especially scientists, medical doctors, pharmacists, veterinary specialists to support government through raising awareness on preventive measures.
He also called on humanitarian Non-Governmental Organisations, the Red Cross, among others, to engage in public sensitisation on how to check spread of the virus.
According to him, monkeypox is a viral disease that occurs primarily in tropical rainforest areas of central and West Africa and occasionally exported to other regions.
He said “monkeypox virus is transmitted from one person to another through close contact with an infected person or animal, or with material contaminated with the virus with lesions, body fluids, respiratory droplets and contaminated materials such as bedding.
The scientist said the disease is usually a self-limited disease with symptoms lasting from two to four weeks.
The scientist, who is also the Director, African Climate Reporters, urged citizens to stop cutting down forest trees, adding that charcoal and firewood business had contributed to forest extinction.
Bello warned against contact with any materials, such as bedding, that had been in contact with sick animal, saying “isolate infected patients from others, practice good hand hygiene after contact with infected animals or humans.
“Monkeypox typically presents clinically with fever, rash and swollen lymph nodes and may lead to a range of medical complications,” he said.
(NAN)
