The Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has disclosed that so far it has recorded at least 21 confirmed cases of people infected with the monkeypox virus and one death within the last five months. It also said that in May alone, it had detected and confirmed six new cases from four states in the country, namely: two in Bayelsa and Adamawa and one each in Lagos and Rivers.
Also reported, but not yet confirmed in May are 20 more cases in eleven states. They are five in Lagos, two in Bayelsa, two in Adamawa, two in Rivers, two in Niger, two in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), one in Delta, one in Oyo, one in Kaduna, one in Edo, and one in Gombe. The one death recorded so far was revealed to have been a 40-year-old man whose compromised immune system from renal co-morbidity and immunosuppressive drugs contributed to his death.
In total, the health agency has detailed a total of 578 suspected cases from September 2017 to the 29th of May 2022 and 32 out of the 36 states have reported at least one case in them. They have also said that although the risk of exposure to the disease is high in Nigeria, studies conducted within the country have shown that there is currently no significant threat to life or community. They added that they would continue to monitor the situation closely and inform the public on the next steps to take as soon as possible.
