The death toll from the diphtheria outbreak in Plateau State has risen to 31, with 469 suspected cases recorded across 10 Local Government Areas.
The state government has activated the Incident Management System to strengthen coordination of the response and appointed Dr Maren Job Damala as Incident Manager.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Nicholas Ba’amlong, disclosed this on Friday during a press briefing in Jos.
Ba’amlong said three of the 469 suspected cases had been laboratory-confirmed, while 31 deaths had been recorded.
Jos North has the highest number of suspected cases with 370, followed by Wade with 29, Jos South with 22, Barkin Ladi and Mangu with 16 each, Pankshin with five, Kanam and Making with four each, Shendam with two and Bassa with one.
He said the government’s response included community sensitisation, active case search and contact tracing, community diagnosis and treatment of mild cases, as well as the provision of treatment commodities to Plateau State Specialist Hospital and Jos University Teaching Hospital for the management of severe cases.
According to him, teachers from public and private schools in Jos North had also been trained to identify early symptoms of diphtheria and respond appropriately.
On vaccination, the commissioner said more than 160,000 children had received diphtheria and tetanus vaccines, while over 30,000 children had received Pentavalent vaccines.
He, however, said the state needed an additional 250,000 doses to vaccinate children in the remaining parts of Jos North and other affected local government areas.
Ba’amlong said the state was also using media campaigns, public enlightenment jingles and information materials to improve awareness, encourage early treatment and increase community participation.
He said the newly activated Incident Management System would coordinate response activities across sectors and partners, facilitate resource mobilisation and monitor containment efforts.
The commissioner said the next phase of the response would include continued case searches and contact tracing, possible expansion of vaccination and community sensitisation, as well as regular monitoring and coordination meetings among stakeholders.
Ba’amlong described diphtheria as a highly infectious bacterial disease that can affect people of all ages, but said children between two and 14 years were the most affected and more likely to develop severe forms of the disease.
He listed symptoms of the disease as cough, sneezing, fever, sore throat, white or greyish patches at the back of the throat, difficulty breathing, neck swelling and, in some cases, skin rash.
The commissioner urged parents and caregivers to ensure their children were fully vaccinated, noting that diphtheria was preventable through vaccination.
He also advised residents to maintain good hygiene, avoid close contact with people showing symptoms, use face masks in crowded places and seek immediate medical attention where diphtheria is suspected.
He urged residents to report suspected cases to Local Government Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers, stressing that early reporting remained critical to containing the outbreak.
Ba’amlong commended the State and Local Government Rapid Response Teams, as well as the NCDC, NPHCDA, WHO, UNICEF, Red Cross, FHI360, Save the Children and other partners for supporting the response.
He also thanked Governor Caleb Mutfwang for his support and urged community leaders, parents, health workers and residents to continue working with the government to contain the outbreak.
