The first case of the deadly Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Nigeria has been confirmed in Lagos, the State Government and the Federal Ministry of Health confirmed in the early hours of Friday morning.
It was brought in by an Italian citizen who works in Nigeria and returned from Milan, Italy to Lagos, Nigeria on the 25th of February 2020.
The victim was confirmed by the Virology Laboratory of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, part of the Laboratory Network of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. The patient is clinically stable, with no serious symptoms, and is being managed at the Infectious Disease Hospital in Yaba, Lagos.
Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, in a statement said Lagos State has reported the patient to the Federal Ministry of Health.
“He fell ill on the 26th February and was transferred to Lagos State Biosecurity Facilities for isolation and testing. COVID-19 infection was confirmed by the Virology Laboratory of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, part of the Laboratory Network of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. The patient is clinically stable, with no serious symptoms, and is being managed at the Infectious Disease Hospital in Yaba, Lagos,” Abayomi said.
Minister of State for Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire in a statement also said:
“I wish to assure all Nigerians that have we have been beefing up our preparedness capabilities since the first confirmation of cases in China, and we will use all the resources made available by the government to respond to this case.
“We have already started working to identify all the contacts of the patient, since he entered Nigeria. Please be reminded that most people who become infected may experience only mild illness and recover easily, but it can be more severe in others, particularly the elderly and persons with other underlying chronic illnesses. All Nigerians should take care of their health and maintain hand and respiratory hygiene to protect themselves and others, including their own families, following the precautions below:
The case, which was confirmed on the 27th of February 2020, is the first case to be reported in Nigeria since the outbreak in China in late December 2019. And it underscored the eerie warning by the WHO Director General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus that all countries need to prepare to combat the deadly coronavirus.
With new infections reported around the world now surpassing those in mainland China, Ghebreyesus said even rich nations should prepare.
“No country should assume it won’t get cases, that would be a fatal mistake, quite literally,” Tedros said, pointing to Italy, where 17 people have died in Europe’s worst outbreak.
