Sokoto commissioner for health, Balarabe Kakale has said the type ‘C’ strain of meningitis, which has killed forty-one people in the state, is deadlier than Ebola virus disease.
Kakale, disclosed this to newsmen in Sokoto, sunday, when he gave an update on the state of high alert declared by the state government since March 20.
He said that the deaths were mostly recorded out of the nearly 600 clinically confirmed cases of meningitis in the eight worst-hit local governments.
They are Rabah, Kebbe, Tureta, Gada, Dange/Shuni, Wamakko, Kware and Bodinga.
“The epidemic was caused by the type “C’’ strain of meningitis and not the type “A’’ strain which the people of the state had hitherto developed immunity for,” Kakale said.
“This new strain of meningitis is deadlier than the dreaded Ebola disease as it kills within four to six hours of afflicting a patient.
“More than eighty percent of the victims also had not been immunised, hence, the aggravation of the epidemic.’’
In another report, it was recorded that the Federal Government has secured 500,000 doses of meningococcal vaccine from the World Health Organisation, WHO, to tackle the outbreak in Zamfara and Katsina states, while additional 800,000 units are expected from the British government.
Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole, said by Tuesday (tomorrow), there would be a meeting with the International Review Group of WHO to request approval for additional vaccines, as part of practical and medically certified efforts to stem the ugly incident.
Adewole said the vaccines were procured through government’s initiatives, even as he assured Nigerians that the outbreak of Cerebrospinal Meningitis ravaging some states in the country would be nipped in the bud.
“We have started working with all the affected states in specific areas of collaboration on massive awareness and sensitization, laboratory investigation and analysis, proper documentation and disease surveillance techniques through the National Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, and National Primary Health Care Development Authority, NPHCDA, which have been of tremendous support since the outbreak.”
