Lagos State Government don confirm say 14 pikin for King’s College Annex, Victoria Island don get diphtheria, and one person don die.
Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, confirm di cases when e visit di school yesterday. E follow come wit di Special Adviser to di Governor on Health, Dr. Kemi Ogunyemi, and oda top government people.
Di visit na to check di situation and put measures wey go stop di disease from spread. Permanent Secretary of Lagos Health District III, Dr. Monsurat Adeleke, and Director of Epidemiology, Biosecurity and Global Health, Dr. Ismail Abdus-Salam, follow join di team as dem inspect di school facilities.
Di Head Teacher, Mr. Zachariah Magaji, PTA Chairman, Peter Oluwaleye, and some school alumni representatives follow di health officials waka round di school and join for vaccination exercise. Dem check di kitchen, dining hall, dormitory, classrooms, sickbay, toilet, and waste disposal areas to identify risk wey fit make di disease spread and improve hygiene measures.
Abayomi talk say di outbreak don dey happen for more than 10 days before dem confirm am. E say di affected students dey receive treatment, as dem don give 12 of dem antibiotics and diphtheria antiserum.
“Dis disease dey spread through air when person cough or sneeze, especially for place wey people dey many,” Abayomi yarn for news briefing.
“We don check di school sanitation, dormitory and classrooms to improve ventilation, space, and access to clean water.”
Di commissioner advise di students make dem maintain personal and environmental hygiene, dey wash hand well and report any sign of diphtheria.
To parents wey dey fear, e assure dem say government don dey handle di matter and warn dem make dem no rush withdraw dia pikin from school because e fit make control harder.
As part of di response, Lagos State don start mass vaccination for di school, but only students wey dia parents gree go collect di booster dose.
“We dey here to make immunity strong. Most pikin don take diphtheria vaccine when dem be small, but e dey reduce with time. Dis booster go help prevent infection,” Abayomi explain.
E still talk say di vaccine no get serious side effect, and anybody wey notice any reaction fit report to di school health centre wey get medical staff wey go attend to dem sharp-sharp.
Di Chief Medical Director of Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Prof. Wasiu Adeyemo, confirm for phone interview say dem admit four students for treatment.
“We get four pikin wey dey LUTH. Dem never discharge dem, but dem stable,” e talk. “Dem don give dem antibiotics and antitoxin wey Lagos State provide, and dem dey respond well to treatment.”
Lagos State Government don warn parents say make dem no rush carry dia pikin comot for school, because some of di students fit don get di bacteria but never show sign, and dem fit go spread am for house and community.
“Dis school dey operate like isolation centre now. We get professionals on ground, sanitation don improve, and vaccination dey go on. E better make di students stay here dan make dem go outside go spread di disease,” Abayomi talk.
Diphtheria na bacterial infection wey dey affect di respiratory system, and e fit spread through cough, sneeze or direct contact with person wey don get am.
Lagos State Government don promise say dem go learn from dis outbreak and put better policy wey go improve hygiene, reduce overcrowding for schools, and make vaccination better.
“Dis na wake-up call. We go review policies on classroom size, dormitory arrangement, and access to water and sanitation to stop future outbreaks,” Abayomi talk.
Di vaccination campaign still dey go on, as medical teams dey try vaccinate as many students and staff as possible. Health officials go still dey di school to monitor di students and handle any side effect if e show.
Authorities dey hope say with di quick response and di public health measures dem don put in place, dem go fit control di outbreak, prevent more deaths and protect di wider community.
Parents and residents don dey advised make dem look out for diphtheria symptoms like serious sore throat, fever, swollen neck and breathing wahala. Anybody wey suspect say e get am make e go nearest health care centre quick-quick for treatment.
Di World Health Organisation (WHO) talk say diphtheria na highly contagious disease wey fit cause serious wahala like breathing problem, heart failure and even death.
Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) don report say between 2022 and early 2025, dem don see 41,336 suspected cases of diphtheria for di country, showing say vaccine-preventable disease still be big health challenge.
