Ebola: Infected Diplomat suffers multi-organ failure in Abuja – NCDC
By Lai Gidado
Concern over Nigeria’s confirmed Ebola case has deepened following the disclosure by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) that an infected diplomat in Abuja has developed multi-organ failure.
The agency disclosed this on Wednesday, October 21, during an emergency incident management meeting in Abuja.
The patient, whose nationality has not been disclosed, was diagnosed with the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, a rare strain of the virus that causes severe illness in humans.
Olajumoke Babatunde, NCDC’s Director of Public Health Laboratory Services, said laboratory tests confirmed the strain responsible for the infection.
“We did three levels of tests, but all were molecular. The strain was Bundibugyo,” Babatunde said.
Another official at the meeting confirmed that the infected woman was a diplomat, adding that her condition had worsened significantly.
“This person is actually a diplomat,” the official said.
The official further disclosed that the patient had developed “multi-organ failure”, indicating that the infection had severely affected multiple organs in her body.
However, the authorities did not disclose the diplomat’s nationality or provide further details about the medical complications she was experiencing.
The Bundibugyo strain is one of the Ebola virus species known to cause severe illness in humans. It was first identified in Uganda in 2007 and has since been associated with outbreaks in parts of Africa.
The virus spreads through direct contact with the blood and other bodily fluids of an infected person who is showing symptoms, as well as contact with contaminated materials.
On Tuesday, the Federal Government announced the confirmation of the Ebola infection in the FCT following laboratory tests that established that the woman had contracted the virus.
The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, said the patient arrived in Nigeria on an international flight from Uganda before being admitted to a private hospital in Abuja.
According to the minister, the woman received medical attention at the facility for several days before the diagnosis was confirmed.
“She is currently in isolation and receiving medical care,” Pate said in an earlier statement.
Pate explained that the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the NCDC and the FCT Health Services Secretariat were collaborating with other relevant authorities to contain the infection and prevent further transmission.
He also disclosed that contact tracing had commenced, with 44 close contacts identified as of the time of the announcement.
Those being monitored include healthcare workers, patients, caregivers and travel contacts who may have been exposed to the infected woman.
However, the authorities have yet to disclose whether any of the 44 identified contacts have developed symptoms or tested positive for the virus.
The NCDC has previously warned about the risk of Ebola being imported into Nigeria amid outbreaks in other African countries.
Ebola virus disease can cause symptoms such as fever, severe weakness, headache, muscle pain and sore throat. In some patients, the illness may progress to vomiting, diarrhoea, skin rashes and internal or external bleeding.
The incubation period ranges from two to 21 days, while infected individuals generally become capable of transmitting the virus after developing symptoms.
Nigeria last recorded an Ebola outbreak in 2014, following the arrival of an infected traveller from Liberia in Lagos. The outbreak was successfully contained through coordinated public health interventions, including patient isolation, surveillance and contact tracing.
