NCDC launches 21-day Ebola watch for exposed travellers

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has placed travellers arriving from countries experiencing Ebola outbreaks under intensified surveillance, directing health workers nationwide to closely monitor individuals who develop symptoms within 21 days of travel. The agency, in updated surveillance guidelines issued to health facilities and disease surveillance officers, said any person who develops a sudden fever and other symptoms associated with Ebola within 21 days of travelling to affected countries should be treated as a suspected case and immediately investigated. The directive comes as Nigeria remains on heightened alert over ongoing Ebola outbreaks in parts of Africa, particularly countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, where health authorities have continued efforts to contain periodic outbreaks of the deadly viral disease. According to the NCDC guidelines, any person with a sudden onset of fever and at least three symptoms, including headaches, lethargy, loss of appetite, muscle or joint pain, stomach pain, difficulty swallowing, vomiting, difficulty breathing, diarrhoea or hiccups, who has travelled to a country reporting suspected or confirmed Ebola cases within the previous 21 days, should be considered a suspected Ebola case. The agency also identified unexplained bleeding in individuals who recently travelled to affected countries as a major red flag requiring urgent public health attention. “Any person with a sudden onset of fever and at least three of the following symptoms—headaches, lethargy, anorexia, aching muscles or joints, stomach pain, difficulty swallowing, vomiting, difficulty breathing, diarrhoea or hiccups—and travel history to countries reporting suspected or confirmed Ebola cases within the last 21 days,” should be treated as a suspected case, the NCDC guidelines stated. The public health agency further warned that persons who have had contact with a confirmed or probable Ebola patient within the previous 21 days and subsequently develop fever, with or without other symptoms, should also be investigated immediately. The guidelines noted that the 21-day period is critical because it corresponds with the known incubation period of the Ebola virus, during which an exposed person may begin to develop symptoms. Beyond international travel, the NCDC said individuals exposed to wildlife or bushmeat within the previous 21 days and who develop persistent fever that does not respond to routine treatment should also be regarded as suspected cases. The agency explained that exposure to sick or dead an