No fewer than 17 persons have died from diphtheria in Niger State in the last seven months, with 124 cases recorded in Bida, Suleja and Shiroro local government areas of the state.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Murtala Muhammad Bagana, who made this disclosure during a press conference in Minna, said a total of 103 patients had been treated and discharged.
He explained that three new cases had recently been identified, with one patient currently on admission, just as the government has intensified surveillance, case management, immunisation and public awareness to contain the outbreak in the state.
Speaking on the outbreak, the Director of Disease Control and Immunisation, Dr Samuel Jiya, blamed poor vaccination coverage as a major factor responsible for the outbreak, while warning that children who miss or fail to complete their routine immunisation remain particularly vulnerable.
Jiya disclosed that investigations have revealed that some affected children had
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