Following the recent outbreak of diphtheria in some parts of the country, the Oyo State government has intensified surveillance, case management, and vaccination campaigns.
This is as it has put healthcare workers on high alert to respond swiftly to suspected cases.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Oluwaserimi Ajetunmobi, stated this on Tuesday, in Ibadan, at the Emergency Operations Centre.
“The government has intensified surveillance, case management, and vaccination campaigns, while healthcare workers are on high alert to respond swiftly to suspected cases,” she said.
The Commissioner urged residents to take necessary precautions, maintain personal hygiene, and adhere to the government’s public health information to contain the disease.
She advised parents to ensure children receive the three doses of the Pentavalent vaccine at 6, 10, and 14 weeks of age.
“Pregnant women should receive the Tetanus-Diphtheria (Td) vaccine during antenatal care.
“Maintain good personal hygiene, including regular handwashing, covering the mouth when coughing or sneezing, and avoiding sharing personal items.
“Avoid close contact with infected individuals and seek medical attention immediately if symptoms arise,” Ajetunmobi added.
She added that symptoms include sore throat, fever, cough, swollen lymph nodes, difficulty swallowing, and, in severe cases, respiratory distress.
“Diphtheria is a highly contagious bacterial infection that spreads through respiratory droplets from coughing or sneezing and direct contact with infected wounds. It primarily affects the throat and upper airways, forming a thick greyish membrane that can obstruct breathing,” Ajetunmobi said.
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Nigeria has recorded a total of 26,005 confirmed cases of diphtheria out of the 42,805 suspected cases reported across 36 states, the Federal Capital Territory, and 351 local government areas.
This is according to the latest data obtained from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, detailing the situation report of the disease from week 19 of 2022 to week 11 of 2025 (March 16, 2025).
The report showed that the confirmed cases were distributed across 187 LGAs in 26 states.
It also noted that a total of 1331 deaths ( with a case fatality rate of 5.1 per cent) were recorded among confirmed cases.
It revealed that, “Kano (24,385), Yobe (5,330), Katsina (4,253), Bauchi (3,066), Borno (3,059), Kaduna (777) & Jigawa (364) accounted for 96.3 of suspected cases reported.
“Kano (18,254), Bauchi (2,334), Yobe (2,383), Katsina (1,517), Borno (1,161) & Jigawa (53), Plateau (119) & Kaduna (44) accounted for 99.1 of confirmed cases reported.
“Majority [16,579 (63.8 per cent)] of the confirmed cases were among children aged one to 14 years.”
The public health institute stated that it provided technical and offsite support to states on case identification, reporting, and response, especially non-reporting and low-burden states, and data harmonisation with laboratory and case management pillars.
Meanwhile, the centre lamented delayed reporting from the states.
It, however, said it would continue with its case management data harmonisation and follow-up with states, offsite/onsite support, collaboration, and supervision of state diphtheria risk communication and community engagement activities, and support testing sites with reagents and consumables, among others.
