Yellow fever cause of strange deaths in Delta

It was gathered that 30 youths aged between 18 and 25 have died in Ute-Okpu, Ute-Erumu and Idumesa communities in 10 weeks.

The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Mordi Ononye, who spoke in Asaba, however, attributed the mystery deaths to yellow fever disease.

Ononye said the laboratory result of the samples collected indicated that much.

He said the result would further be authenticated at the Reference Region Laboratory in Dakar, Senegal where the samples have also been sent to.

He said: “Samples were collected from patients and sent to the laboratory. We have received results and the results point to yellow fever as the cause of the deaths we heard of in those areas.

“The result we have received is helping to move us to a more definitive action while we still wait for a final authentication from the Reference Regional Laboratory in Dakar.”

Ononye said 22 deaths had been recorded as a result of the disease, with seven additional cases being managed at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Asaba.

The commissioner assured residents that the state government was collaborating health related agencies to step up measures to contain the spread of the disease.

He said: “We have begun immediate outbreak response activities. As we speak, we have informed the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency which usually collaborates with us. And that is why they have sent teams to support us.

“We are taking definite lines of action to have an effective response. We assure residents that everything is being done to ensure that it does not escalate.

“Before now, there was a planned yellow fever preventive campaign to begin on November 20. We are moving it closer to enable us tackle what is before us.”

Ononye said yellow fever manifests much more bizarre symptoms than malaria.

“Some patients are with fever, body pains, headache, vomiting with or without blood. Some begin to bleed from the nose or mouth.

“Some of those we have just convulse while some recover very well even without coming to the hospital.”