By Abdullahi Yusuf
The Kano State Government has established more treatment centres as part of its response to the epidemic of the diphtheria disease in the state,the Director-General of the Kano State Centre for Disease Control(KNCDC),Prof. Muhammad Adamu Abbas, has said.
Prof.Abbas, who disclosed this during an interactive session with Journalists in Kano on Saturday, said the treatment centres were located in Rano, Bichi, Wudil, Tudun Wada, Dambatta, among other parts of the state.
He explained that the decision to decentralize the treatment was prompted by the situation where patients from remote parts of the state were traveling to the state capital to access treatment for the disease.
Such movement, he said, could involve commercial transportation and result in long hours on the road, which he said may expose other passengers and communities to the scourge.
The director-general disclosed that a total of 26 treatment centres including those in Primary and Secondary Healthcare facilities were set up to achieve the objective.
He disclosed that more than 32,000 cases of diphtheria had been confirmed in the state since the outbreak of the disease in December 2022.
This, he said, was out of the more than 39,000 suspected cases investigated through laboratory, clinical and epidemiological confirmation.
Prof.Abbas also disclosed that more than 16,000 of the confirmed cases involved children who had never received any vaccination, while over 9,000 had been fully vaccinated.
He said others were either partially vaccinated or had no records of their vaccination status.
He also confirmed that over 1,800 people had died of the disease within the period, assuring that the state government would continue to provide relevant disease information to enable residents take appropriate preventive measures.
He identified late presentation as another major challenge in the fight against the disease, pointing out that diphtheria is an acute illness that could deteriorate rapidly if treatment is delayed.
He urged parents and caregivers to seek immediate medical attention whenever children develop symptoms suggestive of diphtheria.
On the issue of the diphtheria outbreak in Rano Local Government Area which a member of the State House of Assembly said that the disease claimed more than 50 lives,Prof.Abbas rejected the figure, and gave the verified records.
He said the KNCDC investigated the claim and that the surveillance records showed that, as of August 26, 2026, Rano had recorded 32 diphtheria cases from January to August.
Out of those 32 cases, he said, 7 were referred to an isolation centre because of complications, while 25 were treated at a diphtheria treatment centre,adding that two of the 32 patients had died.
According to the director-general,further analysis showed that 94 per cent of the affected children had never received any vaccination, while about 91 per cent were presented late for treatment.
According to him, disease surveillance teams conducted active case searches in communities and health facilities, engaging community leaders and examining available records, adding that the investigation found no evidence to support the claim of more than 50 diphtheria deaths.