JUST IN: Ebola: Nigeria identifies 53 contacts linked to confirmed case

Director-General of NCDC, Jide Idris

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) says it has identified 53 contacts linked to Nigeria’s confirmed case of Ebola disease in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The Director-General of the NCDC, Jide Idris, disclosed this on Sunday during a media briefing in Abuja, where he provided an update on the country’s response to the outbreak.

Mr Idris said the contacts include healthcare workers, the confirmed patient’s domestic staff and spouse, and health personnel who collected samples from the patient.

“As of now, we have 53 primary contacts. These comprise 44 people from the health facility where the patient was treated and nine additional contacts,” he said.

“Of the nine additional contacts, three are household members of the patient, her driver, chef and husband. Three others attended to her at Julius Berger Clinic before she got to the other facility, while the remaining three are members of the team who went to collect samples.”

He said the contacts had been listed and categorised by their level of exposure, and public health teams continued to monitor them.

According to him, none of the identified contacts had tested positive for Ebola or developed symptoms as of the time of the briefing.

Mr Idris also clarified that the agency had investigated two cases, including the confirmed case in the FCT and a suspected case in Rivers State, which tested negative for Ebola.

Nigeria confirmed its first case of Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease on 20 October after a woman who had travelled to Nigeria was diagnosed at a private hospital in Abuja.

The NCDC said the confirmed patient tested positive in three samples, while a sample from her husband tested negative.

Nike Adebowale covers the health beat. She holds a degree from Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti. Twitter: @nikeadebowale1