Meningitis: Vaccination starts in Zamfara as death toll climbs to 438
By Nazifi Dawud
Thousands of residents turned out en mass in Zamfara state, to receive vaccine against Type C Meningitis, which has killed at least 215 people in the state just as it continued to ravage many parts of the country.
A situation report released by the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Friday showed that the death toll from the meningitis scourge has so far mounted to 438 out of 3,959 suspected cases reported from 106 local government areas across the country.
The report, added that even though cases of the disease were reported from 19 states in the country, five states including Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi , Katsina and Niger appeared to be the most affected, with children of ages 5 t0 14 being mostly at risk.
“The most common serotype is Neisseria meningitidis serotype C (Nm C). As at 5th April 2017, a total of 3,959 cases with 438 deaths have been reported, with 181 laboratory confirmed cases. The apparent increase in number of cases is as a result of intensified case-finding going on in the affected States,” the report said.
An official of the NCDC, Lawal Bakare was reported to have said that the vaccination exercise which commenced on April 6, in the most affected parts of the country is expected to last for three days, after which the campaign would be extended to other parts of the country.
Daily Nigerian reports that the immunization exercise is being conducted by the National Primary Health Care Development Authority (NPHCDA) alongside the NCDC.
