The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has published its epidemiological report showing that over 7,000 Nigerians are still recovering from the deadly COVID-19 pandemic as of September 30, 2022.
According to the data, 265,431 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been recorded, with 258,394 persons fully recovered, 7,037 persons yet to recover, and 3,155 deaths.
The NCDC report also revealed that 60 laboratories for COVID-19 testing are not performing.
The centre said 13 laboratories were not testing at all; two laboratories were reporting but not accessible while 45 laboratories were testing but not reporting.
The report showed that out of the 60 non-performing laboratories, 57 were public laboratories, while three were corporate laboratories.
There are currently over 150 laboratories under the NCDC network scattered across the country.
Of the 57 non-performing public laboratories, 10 are in Kaduna State with eight laboratories testing but not reporting, while two laboratories were not testing at all.
As of September 28, 2022 in 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), 39,817,379 of total eligible persons targeted for COVID-19 vaccination were fully vaccinated while 12,942,955 were partially vaccinated.
Also, the WHO reports that globally, as of September 28, 2022, a total of 12,677,499,928 vaccine doses were administered.
Also, the latest epidemiological report by the NCDC showed that in seven days – between September 19 and 25 – Nigeria recorded six new confirmed cases of Lassa fever, including one death.
The report stated that five positive cases of the disease were reported in Ondo State, one in Bauchi State and one fatality in Ondo.
This brings the total number of confirmed cases of Lassa fever in the country to 929 cases, while the number of deaths increased to 172.
The NCDC said since the beginning of the year, 25 states have recorded at least one confirmed case across 102 local government areas, with 71 per cent of the total disease burden in three states: Ondo (32 per cent), Edo (26 per cent), and Bauchi (13 per cent).
“Cumulatively from week one to week 38, 2022: 172 deaths have been reported with a case fatality rate (CFR) of 18.5 per cent, which is lower than the CFR for the same period in 2021 (23.0 per cent).
“The predominant age group affected is 21 to 30 years (range: 0 to 90 years, median age: 30 years). The male-to-female ratio for confirmed cases is 1:0.8.
“The number of suspected cases has increased compared to that reported for the same period in 2021. No new healthcare worker affected in the reporting Week 38,” the report stated.
