The Director-General Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, says a National Rapid Response Team has been deployed to Kano to investigate unidentified illness in the state.
Ihekweazu said this on Monday in Abuja at the joint national briefing of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19.
Four people have died and 200 others infected with the strange disease confirmed in 13 local government areas in the state.
Ihekweazu said that the Kano State Ministry of Health reported a cluster of cases in 13 LGAs within the state with most of the cases having fever, vomiting, yellowish eyes and abdominal pain as symptoms.
He said: “We have tested four samples taken from these cases for Lassa fever and yellow fever at the NCDC National Reference Lab. The results of these were negative.
“A National Rapid Response Team with colleagues from the Federal Ministry of Health, NCDC and NAFDAC has been deployed to Kano State. We are working with, our sister agency NAFDAC, as well as a toxicologist from FMoH to test for potential non-infectious causes.
“Our immediate focus is to identify the cause of this outbreak, ensure management of current cases and to control transmission.
“We will continue to keep members of the public aware on our findings, while we support the state’s response.”
