Cerebrospinal Meningitis (CSM) kills 56 deaths in 32 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) this year, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has said.
Meningitis is an inflammation of the meninges, a thin layer of the connective tissue that covers the brain and the spinal cord.
According to NCDC data, this number is out of the 961 suspected cases of the disease Nigeria has recorded so far this year.
Director-General of NCDC, Dr Ifedayo Adetifa, in a statement on Thursday, said the organization with the support of partners continues to work with affected states to improve surveillance given the underreporting of cases.
He said the centre also executed strategic prevention and control activities to strengthen preparedness, detection and response to meningitis outbreaks.
He said: “ Cerebrospinal Meningitis (CSM) is an epidemic-prone disease with cases reported all year round in Nigeria.
The highest burden occurs in the ‘Meningitis Belt’ of Africa south of the Sahara Desert.
In Nigeria, the belt includes all 19 northern states, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and some Southern States.”
He said despite significant progress in surveillance, diagnostic capacity and vaccine development over the last few years, CSM remained a priority disease and ever-present public health threat in several countries worldwide.
He said to this end, the NCDC, on behalf of Nigeria, joined the global community to launch the global roadmap to defeat meningitis by 2030.
He said the Defeating Meningitis by 2030 global roadmap was approved by the World Health Assembly in November 2020.
“Alignment and local translation of this roadmap are especially critical for Nigeria where meningitis remains one of many often-concurrent public health challenges,” he added.
The World Meningitis Day is celebrated every October 5 to raise awareness of the disease.
The NCDC said meningitis is an epidemic-prone disease with cases reported all year round in Nigeria.
The highest burden occurs in the “Meningitis Belt” of Africa south of the Sahara Desert.
“Meningitis can affect anyone at any age. Seek medical attention if you experience symptoms.
“Let’s take action to #DefeatMeningitis.”
According to the centre, the most common signs and symptoms of meningitis are fever, headache, nausea and vomiting, photophobia (pain on looking at bright lights), neck stiffness, and altered consciousness levels.
“In younger children, it may be more difficult to observe these signs, and irritability, poor feeding, and inactivity are common.
“Meningitis can also cause meningococcal septicemia, presenting with fatigue, severe myalgia (muscle pain), vomiting, cold extremities, rapid breathing, low blood pressure, and a purpuric (dark purple non-blanching) rash,” it added.
