Two suspected Ebola cases in Nigeria’s north-east have tested negative after two rounds of laboratory testing, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention said Sunday, defusing fears that the disease was spreading in the country.
The samples, taken from two individuals isolated in Yola, Adamawa State, showed no evidence of Ebola virus disease, NCDC Director-General Dr. Jide Idris said in a statement Saturday.
“Fortunately, the samples turned out negative for EVD after two rounds of testing,” Idris said.
The agency received a report of two individuals showing symptoms suggestive of Ebola in the early hours of October 30, prompting the isolation, contact tracing and testing, according to Voice of Nigeria.
Only one confirmed case in Nigeria
The index case previously confirmed in the Federal Capital Territory remains the only laboratory-confirmed Ebola infection in Nigeria, Idris said, adding that Adamawa State has no laboratory-confirmed case.
The confirmed case — a 42-year-old woman who arrived in Abuja from Uganda via Addis Ababa on October 3 — was confirmed on October 20, Nigeria’s first in more than a decade. She and her husband were evacuated to Switzerland on Monday, Reuters reported.
The regional outbreak
The scare comes amid a severe regional outbreak. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, more than 5,000 people have died since the outbreak was declared in May, Reuters reported Sunday. Government data cited by the Associated Press on Saturday recorded 5,026 deaths among 10,351 confirmed cases of the Bundibugyo strain — already the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak in history after the 2014–2016 West Africa epidemic.
There are no approved treatments or vaccines for the Bundibugyo species, Reuters reported.
Kenya has recorded eight cases and two deaths connected to the outbreak, the AP reported.
This is a developing story; figures are based on official data and may be revised.
Sources: Reuters; Voice of Nigeria; Associated Press.
