The Kano State Centre for Disease Control has launched an investigation into reports of children dying from suspected diphtheria in Rano Local Government Area.
The agency, however, said its official surveillance records did not currently support the reported number of deaths.
The KNCDC Director-General, Prof. Muhammad Adamu Abbas, disclosed this while responding to concerns raised by the Kano State House of Assembly over the reported deaths.
Speaking with journalists in Kano, Abbas said 32 diphtheria cases had been recorded in Rano, including 25 in August and seven between May and July.
He said seven patients had been transferred to the Infectious Disease Hospital in Kano, the designated isolation and treatment centre for diphtheria, while other patients were receiving treatment at health facilities in Rano.
According to him, the agency conducted an active case search in the area on August 19, leading to the identification of additional suspected cases.
Abbas said the agency had yet to establish that all the reported deaths were caused by diphtheria, noting that other illnesses could have been responsible for some of the deaths.
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He said further investigations, including verbal autopsies, were being conducted to determine the actual circumstances surrounding the deaths.
The director-general expressed concern over cases where sick children were initially treated at home or taken to traditional healers before being brought to health facilities.
He urged parents and caregivers to seek medical attention promptly whenever children develop symptoms suggestive of diphtheria or other infectious diseases.
Abbas also called for stronger vaccination coverage, saying Kano State had formally requested additional vaccines from the Federal Government to reinforce its response to diphtheria.
He disclosed that Kano had recorded more than 38,000 suspected diphtheria cases since 2022, with over 31,000 later confirmed.
According to him, more than 55 per cent of the confirmed cases involved zero-dose children who had never received vaccination, while a significant proportion were only partially immunised.
He said more than 27 local government areas had reported diphtheria cases but maintained that the situation remained largely under control due to the state’s disease surveillance and response system.
Abbas said the surveillance network included Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers, community informants and traditional institutions, which helped authorities identify and respond to suspected outbreaks.
On cholera, the KNCDC director-general said the state was also monitoring a separate outbreak, with 227 suspected cases investigated.
He said samples were collected from 15 suspected cases, with seven testing positive through rapid diagnostic tests, while subsequent laboratory analysis confirmed six cases.
Abbas attributed Kano’s relatively high disease figures partly to its strengthened surveillance system, which he said enabled the state to detect cases that might otherwise go unreported.
He appealed to residents to report suspected infectious diseases promptly at primary, secondary or tertiary healthcare facilities, assuring that patients requiring specialised care would be referred appropriately.
He commended the Kano State Government, House of Assembly, traditional institutions and community surveillance networks for supporting disease detection and response efforts.
The KNCDC said investigations into the reported deaths in Rano were ongoing, with health officials working to determine the actual number of deaths and establish their causes.
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