Trends and Geographical Distribution of Diphtheria in Nigeria: A Re-Emerging Disease
Diphtheria is a highly contagious and deadly vaccine–preventable bacterial infection that affects a person’s nose, throat, and occasionally the skin. Diphtheria is fatal in 5–10% of cases; however, the case fatality rate (CFR) can be as high as 20–40% among children and unvaccinated adults. Currentl...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2024-01-01
|
| Series: | Biology and Life Sciences Forum |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-9976/31/1/22 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1846105500342550528 |
|---|---|
| author | Surayya Mustapha Salim Fatima Muhammed Hamza |
| author_facet | Surayya Mustapha Salim Fatima Muhammed Hamza |
| author_sort | Surayya Mustapha Salim |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Diphtheria is a highly contagious and deadly vaccine–preventable bacterial infection that affects a person’s nose, throat, and occasionally the skin. Diphtheria is fatal in 5–10% of cases; however, the case fatality rate (CFR) can be as high as 20–40% among children and unvaccinated adults. Currently, the number of diphtheria cases reported globally has being increasing gradually. Nigeria ranks number six in the list of countries by population with about 42.54% of its population below 14 years of age. Despite the availability of the antitoxin vaccine in the country, only 41.7% of children under 15 years of age are fully vaccinated, making the country more vulnerable to the disease. The study, therefore, aimed to examine the spread and trend of diphtheria in Nigeria since the major outbreak of the disease in December 2022. Data for the study were sourced from secondary sources. From December 2022 to January 2023, Nigeria recorded a total of 111 (42.1%) confirmed cases and 22 deaths, with a case fatality rate for confirmed/probable cases of 19.8% in four states. Out of the 111 confirmed cases, only a small percentage (10.8%) were vaccinated with the diphtheria toxin-containing vaccine. Additionally, the majority (91.9%) of the confirmed cases occurred in children aged 2–14 years. Since then, there has been a constant number of reported cases. As of 31 July 2023, the country recorded a total of 1534 confirmed cases in 11 states and 137 deaths, with a CFR of 8.9%. The majority (66.4%) of the confirmed cases occurred among children aged 1–14 years, with only 18.1% of the 1534 confirmed cases previously vaccinated. In this era of globalization, if prompt action is not taken, diphtheria will become a major threat not only to Nigeria but also globally. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-776a52b7a481437dbc40eb200f45904a |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2673-9976 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Biology and Life Sciences Forum |
| spelling | doaj-art-776a52b7a481437dbc40eb200f45904a2024-12-27T14:14:36ZengMDPI AGBiology and Life Sciences Forum2673-99762024-01-013112210.3390/ECM2023-16693Trends and Geographical Distribution of Diphtheria in Nigeria: A Re-Emerging DiseaseSurayya Mustapha Salim0Fatima Muhammed Hamza1Department of Biological Sciences, Bayero University, Kano 700241, NigeriaDepartment of Integrated Science, Federal College of Education, Kano 700241, NigeriaDiphtheria is a highly contagious and deadly vaccine–preventable bacterial infection that affects a person’s nose, throat, and occasionally the skin. Diphtheria is fatal in 5–10% of cases; however, the case fatality rate (CFR) can be as high as 20–40% among children and unvaccinated adults. Currently, the number of diphtheria cases reported globally has being increasing gradually. Nigeria ranks number six in the list of countries by population with about 42.54% of its population below 14 years of age. Despite the availability of the antitoxin vaccine in the country, only 41.7% of children under 15 years of age are fully vaccinated, making the country more vulnerable to the disease. The study, therefore, aimed to examine the spread and trend of diphtheria in Nigeria since the major outbreak of the disease in December 2022. Data for the study were sourced from secondary sources. From December 2022 to January 2023, Nigeria recorded a total of 111 (42.1%) confirmed cases and 22 deaths, with a case fatality rate for confirmed/probable cases of 19.8% in four states. Out of the 111 confirmed cases, only a small percentage (10.8%) were vaccinated with the diphtheria toxin-containing vaccine. Additionally, the majority (91.9%) of the confirmed cases occurred in children aged 2–14 years. Since then, there has been a constant number of reported cases. As of 31 July 2023, the country recorded a total of 1534 confirmed cases in 11 states and 137 deaths, with a CFR of 8.9%. The majority (66.4%) of the confirmed cases occurred among children aged 1–14 years, with only 18.1% of the 1534 confirmed cases previously vaccinated. In this era of globalization, if prompt action is not taken, diphtheria will become a major threat not only to Nigeria but also globally.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-9976/31/1/22diphtheriaNigeriaconfirmed casesvaccinated |
| spellingShingle | Surayya Mustapha Salim Fatima Muhammed Hamza Trends and Geographical Distribution of Diphtheria in Nigeria: A Re-Emerging Disease Biology and Life Sciences Forum diphtheria Nigeria confirmed cases vaccinated |
| title | Trends and Geographical Distribution of Diphtheria in Nigeria: A Re-Emerging Disease |
| title_full | Trends and Geographical Distribution of Diphtheria in Nigeria: A Re-Emerging Disease |
| title_fullStr | Trends and Geographical Distribution of Diphtheria in Nigeria: A Re-Emerging Disease |
| title_full_unstemmed | Trends and Geographical Distribution of Diphtheria in Nigeria: A Re-Emerging Disease |
| title_short | Trends and Geographical Distribution of Diphtheria in Nigeria: A Re-Emerging Disease |
| title_sort | trends and geographical distribution of diphtheria in nigeria a re emerging disease |
| topic | diphtheria Nigeria confirmed cases vaccinated |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-9976/31/1/22 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT surayyamustaphasalim trendsandgeographicaldistributionofdiphtheriainnigeriaareemergingdisease AT fatimamuhammedhamza trendsandgeographicaldistributionofdiphtheriainnigeriaareemergingdisease |