21 new cases of monkeypox have been reported in Nigeria in the last seven days, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC
The NCDC made the announcement in a statement posted on its official website on Sunday.
The latest figure brings the country’s total number of verified Monkeypox cases to 241.
“Of the 241 confirmed cases of Monkeypox in the country, Lagos state has the highest burden of the disease, with 42 confirmed cases since the beginning of the year.
“This translates to 17.4 per cent of the total burden of the disease in the country.
“Overall, since the re-emergence of Monkeypox in September 2017 to August this year, a total of 1,116 suspected cases have been reported from 35 states.
“Of the 1,116 suspected cases, there have been 467 (41.8 per cent) confirmed (309 male, 158 female) from 32 states,” the agency said.
NCDC noted that a total of 14 deaths have been reported with a case fatality rate of 3% in 10 states out of the total number of suspected cases from September.
“The states are Lagos – three, Edo – two, Imo – one, Cross River – one, FCT – one, Rivers – one, Ondo State – one, Delta – one, Akwa Ibom – one, Taraba – one and Kogi – one,” the NCDC stated.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) reported on September 1 that more than 50,000 Monkeypox cases had been recorded worldwide since the disease was declared a global health emergency in July.
Monkeypox is a virus transmitted to humans from animals with symptoms similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients, although clinically less severe.
It can be transmitted via animal-to-human contact from direct contact with the blood, bodily fluids, or lesions of infected animals.
The human-to-human transmission could be spread by close contact and exposure to an infected person’s respiratory droplets, skin lesions or bodily fluids.
According to the NCDC, Monkeypox symptoms include swollen lymph nodes, fever and a rash that may initially be mistaken for chickenpox or a sexually transmitted disease, if in the genital or anal region.
