The Director of Public Health at the Kaduna State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Hamza Ibrahim-Ikara, who disclosed this on Tuesday in an interview in Kaduna, the state capital said that the suspected cases were from four local government areas including Makarfi, Kubau, Jema’a (Kafanchan) and Kaduna North.
The Kaduna State government has disclosed that it has recorded eight deaths from diphtheria and 68 suspected cases.
The Director of Public Health at the Kaduna State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Hamza Ibrahim-Ikara, who disclosed this on Tuesday in an interview in Kaduna, the state capital said that the suspected cases were from four local government areas including Makarfi, Kubau, Jema’a (Kafanchan) and Kaduna North.
Ibrahim-Ikara added that for the recorded deaths, five were from Jema’a and three from Makarfi.
“We still have one suspected case in Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital now,” revealing that 28 samples were taken to the laboratory. “For now, they are all suspected cases, no confirmation yet until the results are out,” News Agency of Nigeria reports.
Ibrahim-Ikara noted that contact tracing and active search are also ongoing to curb transmission and that the Rapid Response Team was carrying out media and door-to-door sensitisation campaigns in communities.
He therefore urged residents to report suspected cases to the nearest health facilities across Kaduna. He said the state government prioritised routine immunisation to ensure all children were fully vaccinated against the disease.
Diphtheria is a severe bacterial infection that usually affects the nose and throat mucous membranes.