Nigeria is monitoring 44 people who had close contact with a patient whose Bundibugyo virus disease was laboratory-confirmed, as authorities investigate the country’s first detected case in the wider outbreak.
The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare confirmed the case on Oct. 20 after laboratory tests. The woman was receiving care in isolation at a private hospital in the Federal Capital Territory, the ministry said. It reported that 44 people who had contact with her were being monitored; EconoTimes previously covered the contact investigation.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said the woman arrived in Nigeria four days before symptoms began on Oct. 7. She sought medical care in Abuja on Oct. 11, the agency said. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) activated an incident management system. WHO and partner organizations are assisting Nigerian teams with the investigation, contact tracing, infection-control measures and protective supplies for health workers.
Muhammad Ali Pate, Nigeria’s coordinating minister of health and social welfare, said the country was tracing contacts and putting containment measures in place after meeting Chief of Staff to the President Femi Gbajabiamila on Oct. 21, Punch and TheCable reported. The outlets quoted Pate as saying, “Nigerians should be reassured. We must be vigilant, but not panic.”
Preparations predated the case. On June 9, President Bola Tinubu established a Presidential Task Force for Ebola readiness and directed the release of N10 billion for NCDC preparedness and public-health response activities.
WHO has placed Nigeria fifth among the countries to detect the virus since an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was declared May 15. The agency says no vaccine is licensed for Bundibugyo virus disease and no specific treatment has been approved. Pate also referred to Nigeria’s 2014 Ebola response, Punch and TheCable reported. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention counted 20 cases in that outbreak — 19 confirmed and one probable — and eight deaths. WHO declared the outbreak over in Nigeria on Oct. 20, 2014.
WHO said investigators are reviewing the woman’s travel and exposure history to establish where she may have contracted the virus.
