Ebola patient in Abuja develops multiple organ failure

ABUJA, Nigeria has confirmed its first case of Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), prompting an urgent public health response and intensified efforts to prevent further transmission.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the confirmed case involves a woman who recently travelled from Uganda to Nigeria. She reportedly developed symptoms on October 7, sought treatment at a private health facility in Abuja on October 11, and tested positive for the virus on October 20.

The patient has been placed in isolation and is receiving medical care. Health authorities have identified 44 people who may have been exposed to the infection and are monitoring them as investigations continue.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, NCDC, has disclosed that the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola detected in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, involves a diplomat whose condition has deteriorated into multiple organ failure.

The development comes after Health Minister Muhammad Ali Pate announced on Tuesday that a female patient who had travelled from Uganda had tested positive for the virus. However, Charles Olaro, Director-General of Health Services in Uganda, subsequently clarified that the patient was Nigerian.

Providing an update on Wednesday, the NCDC confirmed that the infection identified in the FCT was caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which was first detected in Uganda in 2007. The virus can spread through direct contact with infected bodily fluids or contaminated materials.

Olajumoke Babatunde, the NCDC’s Director of Public Health Laboratory Services, said laboratory investigations confirmed that the Nigerian case involved the Bundibugyo strain, which has also been linked to a major outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Babatunde disclosed that the diplomat’s health had worsened, resulting in “multi-organ failure”.

However, she did not reveal the patient’s nationality.

“We did three levels of tests, but all were molecular. The strain was Bundibugyo,” Babatunde said.