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The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has reported two suspected Ebola cases as the number of people identified through contact tracing following Nigeria’s confirmed infection rises to 53.
The Director-General of the NCDC, Dr Jide Idris, disclosed the development during a press briefing in Abuja on Sunday, October 25, as health authorities intensified efforts to prevent further transmission of the virus.
Idris referred to two additional suspected cases while providing an update on the country’s Ebola surveillance and response activities.
“We have established two additional suspected cases and 53 primary contact links. They are primary contacts. We have an isolation centre and a quarantine centre,” he said.
However, other accounts of the briefing indicated that the NCDC had investigated two cases, including the confirmed infection in Abuja and a suspected case in Rivers State that subsequently tested negative.
The precise status of the two additional suspected cases reported by TheCable was therefore not immediately clear.
Providing details of the contact-tracing exercise, Idris said the 53 identified individuals included 44 people associated with the healthcare facility where the confirmed patient received treatment and nine others identified during further investigations.
The additional contacts comprised three household members of the patient, three healthcare workers who attended to her at an earlier medical facility and three personnel involved in collecting samples.
The NCDC said the individuals had been classified according to their exposure risks and placed under monitoring.
According to the agency, none of the 53 identified contacts had tested positive for Ebola or developed symptoms as of the briefing.
Idris explained that public health teams would continue monitoring exposed individuals for 21 days after their last possible exposure.
He also disclosed that approximately 12 public and private laboratories were available to conduct Ebola testing in Nigeria.
The NCDC boss urged healthcare facilities nationwide to strengthen screening, patient assessment and infection prevention measures.
He stressed the importance of providing healthcare workers with adequate personal protective equipment and promptly reporting suspected infections.
Idris also appealed to individuals contacted by public health officials to cooperate with investigators and provide accurate information about their movements, possible exposures and symptoms.
Nigeria confirmed its first Ebola case in the current regional outbreak on October 20 after a woman with recent travel history to Uganda tested positive for the Bundibugyo strain of the virus in Abuja.
According to the World Health Organisation, the woman developed symptoms on October 7 and sought treatment at a private health facility on October 11 before laboratory testing confirmed the infection.
The initial contact-tracing exercise identified 44 people, but the number has since increased to 53 as investigations expanded.
The Federal Government has maintained heightened surveillance and strengthened laboratory testing, isolation arrangements and infection prevention protocols.
Health authorities have also urged Nigerians to remain vigilant, cooperate with public health officials and avoid spreading unverified information.
The two suspected cases cited in Sunday’s reporting should not be regarded as additional confirmed infections without laboratory confirmation.
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