Dr Shamsuddeen Yahaya, the Executive Secretary of Katsina State Primary Health Development Agency,on Tuesday confirmed that 18 deaths had been recorded from an outbreak of a disease suspected to be yellow fever in the Matazu Local Government Area of the state.
He stated that laboratory tests carried out in Abuja and in Lagos on the disease had not indicated clearly that it was yellow fever.
Yahaya said, “As of today, Tuesday, October 29, 2019, the number of deaths recorded from the outbreak of the disease in the council (Matazu) was 18. Total cases recorded were 45, out of which 18 deaths occurred.
“We had the first reported case of the disease in the Matazu LGA on the 29th September, 2019. It was reported by our diseases surveillance officer. Since then, we have been monitoring situations in the council. We collected samples and sent them to Lagos University Teaching Hospital and the National Reference Laboratory, Abuja for tests. Out of the eleven samples we sent, the results of five we have so far received was negative. The results of the remaining six are being awaited.
“ The disease was reported in Matazu,’A’ Ward; Kogarin Ward; Shayaya and Kharadua wards. Our Rapid Response team is on the ground in the council, monitoring developments and carrying out routine vaccinations. I get daily report of the situation from the council.”
He added, “Don’t forget that following the outbreak of yellow fever in August in another local government, Dan-Musa Local Government Area, we vaccinated 16,000 people in the council.
“Thereafter, we carried out massive vaccination in the thirty-three local government areas of the state with the exception of Danja Local Government Area, which we did in 2018.
“We vaccinated about 6,720,029 in the 33 local government areas during the recent massive yellow fever vaccination from September 28 to October 7, 2019. Even after the exercise, we have been carrying out routine immunisation.”
