Meningitis: A killer disease Nigeria was not prepared for.
The Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, raised an alarm over the outbreak of Cerebro Spinal Meningitis across north-western Nigeria. The first case of the disease was reported in Zamfara State in November, 2016, by then the disease had become an epidemic affecting six states in the northern part of the country. Since the outbreak, about 489 people are believed to have died of the disease with about 4,637 suspected cases reported across the country. Meningitis has occurred in different parts of the world but the highest incidence of the disease is found in the ‘meningitis belt’ of sub-Saharan Africa including Senegal, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Nigeria, Niger, Chad, more commonly seen during the dry season. In this meningitis belt, the Type A strain of the bacteria was most common, however, it is the unusual Type C strain of the bacteria that Nigeria is currently battling with, which does not even mean that type A has been eliminated totally. Procuring vaccinations and drugs to contain the spread of the deadly disease became a major concern for international health agencies, the federal government, state governments, local governments and concerned individuals across the globe.