1,319 Nigerians died of diphtheria in 36 months – NCDC
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has reported that between April 2022 and March 9, 2025, diphtheria claimed 1,319 lives across the country.
This was disclosed in the Centre’s latest situation report.
The report, covering Week 19 of 2022 through Week 10 of 2025, revealed that there were 42,642 suspected cases of diphtheria across 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), spanning 350 local government areas (LGAs). Of these, 25,812 cases were confirmed through laboratory testing, epidemiological linkage, or clinical compatibility.
In Epidemiological Week 10 of 2025, a total of 23 suspected cases were reported in two states, with Lagos accounting for 20 cases and Katsina recording three cases in two LGAs. None of these cases were confirmed through laboratory testing, epidemiological linkage, or clinical compatibility, and there were no recorded deaths, maintaining a case fatality rate of zero percent for the week under review.
However, over the cumulative period, most suspected cases were concentrated in Kano State, which reported 24,239 suspected cases, followed by Yobe (5,330), Katsina (4,237), Bauchi (3,066), Borno (3,058), Kaduna (777), and Jigawa (364). These seven states accounted for 96.3% of the total suspected cases, while confirmed cases were spread across 184 LGAs in 26 states. Kano led with 18,108 confirmed cases, followed by Bauchi (2,334), Yobe (2,408), Katsina (1,501), and Borno (1,161). Smaller numbers of confirmed cases were reported in Lagos, Gombe, Edo, Adamawa, Nasarawa, Osun, Abia, Kebbi, Niger, Taraba, Cross River, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, and Ogun states.
Children between the ages of 1 and 14 accounted for 62.9% (16,234) of the confirmed cases, while only 19.3% (4,981) of confirmed cases had received the diphtheria toxoid-containing vaccine.
The fatality distribution showed that Kano recorded the highest number of deaths (850), followed by Katsina (114), Yobe (109), Bauchi (104), and Borno (68). Additional fatalities occurred in Plateau (29), Kaduna (11), Jigawa (7), the FCT (7), Lagos (6), and Sokoto (5). Smaller numbers of deaths were reported in Adamawa, Edo, Gombe, Nasarawa, Osun, and Ekiti.
The NCDC’s report also outlined several challenges in the outbreak response, such as very low test positivity rates. In 2024, all confirmed cases were identified solely through clinical compatibility due to shortages of reagents and consumables needed for direct polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing on clinical samples.
In response, the NCDC said it provided extensive technical and offsite support to state authorities, focusing on improving case identification, reporting, and response efforts, particularly in areas with low case reporting.
The agency added that it also expanded its use of social media, employing comics and survivor interview videos to raise public awareness. Furthermore, the NCDC is working to optimize PCR protocols for direct testing and enhance laboratory capacity for diagnosing diphtheria.
