By Garba Abdullahi Bagwai, in Kano
The Kano State Centre for Disease Control (KNCDC) has commenced verbal autopsies on the relatives of children who reportedly died following suspected diphtheria infections in Rano Local Government Area of the state.
The centre said on Wednesday that it had also launched an investigation into reports of the deaths of more than 50 children in the area following suspected cases of diphtheria.
The KNCDC Director-General, Professor Muhammad Abbas, disclosed this at a news conference held at the centre’s headquarters in Kano, following concerns raised by the Kano State House of Assembly over the reported deaths.
Abbas said the centre had officially recorded 32 diphtheria cases across some local government areas of the state this year, comprising 25 cases reported in August, six in July and one in May.
“Seven of the 32 patients were admitted to the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH), the designated isolation and treatment centre for diphtheria cases in Kano,” he said.
The director-general explained that an active case search conducted on August 19, following four reported cases on August 13, led to the identification of 10 additional cases and two deaths.
He attributed the disparity between the officially recorded cases and reports of more than 50 deaths to late reporting, noting that some patients were treated at home or by traditional healers instead of seeking medical attention at health facilities.
Abbas said the KNCDC was conducting verbal autopsies by interviewing relatives of some of the deceased to establish the circumstances surrounding their deaths and determine whether diphtheria or other illnesses were responsible.
He urged parents and caregivers to promptly take children showing suspected symptoms of diphtheria to health facilities, warning that delayed treatment could result in severe complications and death.
The KNCDC boss disclosed that Kano State had recorded more than 38,000 suspected diphtheria cases since the outbreak began in 2022, with over 31,000 subsequently confirmed.
He said more than 55 per cent of the confirmed cases involved zero-dose children who had never received any vaccination, while about 16 per cent were partially immunised.
He stressed the need for intensified vaccination campaigns across the state to protect children from the disease.
Abbas commended the Kano State Government and the State House of Assembly for their support and appealed to residents to promptly report suspected cases of infectious diseases to primary, secondary or tertiary healthcare facilities.
He said early reporting and treatment remained critical to preventing complications and further deaths.
