‘Don’t panic’ — resident doctors ask Nigerians to report mpox cases

The Association of Resident Doctors, University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (ARD-UITH) says there is no need for Nigerians to panic over the outbreak of mpox in some parts of the country.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Africa Centre for Disease Control (CDC) declared the outbreak of mpox in parts of Africa a public health emergency.

At least 450 people have died as a result of the disease in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and it has since spread to other countries.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said 39 mpox cases and zero deaths have been recorded across 33 states and the federal capital territory (FCT).

In 2022, the WHO listed Nigeria among 12 African countries where mpox is endemic.

Yusuf Muhammed, president of ARD-UITH, in an interview with NAN on Monday, said mpox is not new but noted that novel strains commonly appear.

“The fear is that the antibody that humans have may not be able to protect against it like the strain that occurred before,” Muhammed said.

“This poses a significant threat to people, and everybody should be on the lookout.”

He added the association is ready to deploy all measures, responses, and preparedness activated during COVID-19 to fight any eventual outbreak of mumps in the country.

“The public should not panic, but report cases to health agencies for contact tracing and proper investigation, so that at-risk individuals can also be quarantined and prevention measures taken,” he said.

“ARD from the national body and the UITH are observing the trend, preventive measures, and advice from the scientific community, so that we appraise it and also contribute our quota to the body of knowledge.”