Nigeria’s Bundibugyo Virus Disease monitoring: The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) says all 62 contacts linked to Nigeria’s imported Bundibugyo Virus Disease case have completed 21-day monitoring without secondary transmission.
The NCDC Director-General, Dr Jide Idris, announced this on Friday in Abuja. He said the last contact completed the mandatory monitoring period and was discharged.
Idris said 13 contacts developed fever or other symptoms during monitoring. However, laboratory tests confirmed that none had the disease.
Similarly, health authorities investigated seven additional alerts in Adamawa, Rivers, Borno, Lagos and Ekiti within three weeks. All suspected cases tested negative.
Despite the outcome, the NCDC warned that completing contact monitoring does not mean Nigeria is free of the disease.
Idris said authorities would continue surveillance, particularly because Ebola transmission persists in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Nigeria has activated its National Emergency Operations Centre and placed its Incident Management System at Level Three, the highest response level for Ebola.
The agency confirmed the index case on 20 October in the Federal Capital Territory after healthcare workers raised an alert through its event-based surveillance system.
Authorities traced contacts across healthcare facilities, households and other relevant locations. They also strengthened infection prevention measures in hospitals.
The index patient was medically evacuated to Switzerland on 26 October for further treatment after receiving care in Nigeria.
Idris said initial laboratory tests in Switzerland confirmed that she remained positive. However, she later recovered, tested negative and was discharged from hospital.
The NCDC urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and report suspected cases promptly. It also warned that international travel could still expose the country to imported Ebola infections.
