The Plateau government has ordered the temporary closure of primary and secondary schools as part of measures to contain the spread of the diphtheria outbreak in the state.
The directive, issued on Saturday by Caleb Mutfwang, the Plateau governor, takes effect from Monday, September 7 and will be in place until further notice.
No fewer than 23 people have died in Plateau following a breakout of diphtheria in the state early last month.
In an interview with NAN on Friday, Nicholas Baamlong, the health commissioner, said the state has recorded 148 suspected cases of diphtheria.
The commissioner said eight patients were currently receiving treatment at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), while another five were admitted at the Plateau Specialist Hospital, where isolation centres had been established for suspected cases.
He said the state government had alerted the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and requested materials needed for the collection and transportation of samples for laboratory confirmation.
Baamlong said the state had also received materials to enable health officials to collect samples from suspected cases and send them for testing.
Diphtheria is a disease caused by a bacterium that affects the upper respiratory tract and, less often, the skin. It also produces a toxin that damages the heart and the nerves.
It is a vaccine-preventable disease, but multiple doses and booster doses are needed to produce and sustain immunity.
Without proper treatment, diphtheria can be fatal in around 30 percent of cases, with young children at higher risk of dying, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).
INSUFFICIENT DIPHTHERIA ANTITOXIN
Baamlong expressed concern over the low availability of diphtheria antitoxin in the country.
The commissioner urged parents to ensure that their children received and completed routine immunisation, noting that some of the affected children had either not been vaccinated or had incomplete vaccination.
He advised parents and caregivers to seek prompt medical attention when children develop symptoms, attributing some of the deaths to late presentation at health facilities.
Baamlong said the government has intensified sensitisation and vaccination campaigns in affected communities to contain the spread of the disease.
He urged residents to maintain good personal and environmental hygiene and avoid overcrowding as part of measures to prevent further transmission of the disease.
He also said consultations were ongoing with school authorities over concerns that reopening schools could increase contact among children and facilitate further spread of the disease.
