Nigeria has recorded 65 confirmed cases of Cholera with 30 deaths from 1 January to 11 June across 96 local governments in 30 states, says the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC).
NCDC revealed this in a public health advisory published Thursday to alert the public of the increasing trend of cholera cases across the country as the rainy season intensifies.
This follows a reported outbreak in Lagos State which resulted in about 60 hospital admissions and five deaths in 48 hours.
According to the NCDC, a total of 1,141 suspected cases have been recorded in 2024. Ten states contributed 90 per cent of the total number.
The states are Bayelsa, Zamfara, Abia, Cross River, Bauchi, Delta, Katsina, Imo, Nasarawa and Lagos.
About Cholera, treatment
Cholera is a highly contagious food and water-borne disease. It spreads through direct transmission by eating or drinking contaminated food or water, and indirect transmission due to poor sanitation and lack of handwashing.
Symptoms of cholera include acute, painless watery diarrhoea of sudden onset, with or without vomiting. It may be associated with nausea, profuse vomiting and fever.
According to the NCDC, severe cases can lead to death within hours due to dehydration, however, about 80 per cent of people may only show mild symptoms or have no symptoms at all.
NCDC noted that the disease is easily treatable if detected early and most infected people can be treated successfully through prompt administration of oral rehydration solution (ORS), to replace lost fluids and electrolytes, and appropriate antibiotics.
