117 Lagosians have so far been infected with
gastroenteritis and we've got tips here to keep you out of harm's way.
A stomach or intestinal
disease is plaguing Lagos, and according to Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin
Abayomi, some 117 persons have been infected by the disease in five local
government areas of the state.
A health
worker in Ebute-metta discloses that some 168 patients have been diagnosed with
the ailment so far; and that the figure could be higher because not all cases
are reported.
The ailment is called gastroenteritis and it is the name for the
inflammation of the stomach and intestines.
Gastroenteritis
is a bacterial or viral infection which causes vomiting and diarrhea.
Its symptoms may include diarrhea, vomiting and
abdominal pain.
Symptoms may also include feverishness,
a lack of energy and dehydration.
| Dr Akin Abayomi is Commissioner for Health in Lagos (Nigerian Health blog) |
“Patients with gastroenteritis
come down with severe acute watery diarrhea and profuse vomiting. Those
infected with micro-organisms causing the disease show signs and symptoms
within 12 hours to one week after ingesting contaminated food or water. The
disease affects both children and adults and can kill within hours if
untreated,” Abayomi
says.
What causes
gastroenteritis?
Poor hygiene, eating contaminated
food and drinking contaminated water are causal factors, like Abayomi pointed
earlier.
The micro-organisms that cause
gastroenteritis are the same ones that cause typhoid fever, cholera and certain
viral diseases.
Consuming uncooked seafood,
unwashed fruits and vegetables or shellfish from estuarine waters, can also
leave you prone to gastroenteritis infection.
What could have
caused the Lagos epidemic?
The rains contributed
significantly.
It’s been raining without let in
Lagos and flood water has become part of everyone’s life in the nation’s
commercial capital. That flood water comes laden with all kinds of harmful
micro-organisms from waste, faeces and urine.
When residents swim
in all of this infested water and
enter homes or consume food without thoroughly washing their hands or bodies,
they leave themselves open to intestinal infections.
When food vendors prepare dishes
or wash utensils or cutlery with contaminated water, they help spread the
disease.
Abayomi also states that the
increase in the number of cases of gastroenteritis is not unconnected to the
persistent rainfall in Lagos and the attendant flooding.
What is the
Lagos government doing to curb spread?
The health commissioner says “following the report of these cases, Rapid Response Teams at the
affected LGAs led by the Medical Officers of Health were activated, stool
specimen were collected for laboratory test to confirm the micro-organism
causing the vomiting and diarrhea while surveillance have also been scaled up
in communities within the affected LGAs to stop the spread of the
infection.
“The results of laboratory tests will be published once the source
pathogen is identified.”
Some of the worst hit local
governments are Lagos Island, Ajeromi, Apapa,
Mushin andIkeja.
Of the 117 cases of
gastroenteritis reported so far, 109 have been treated and discharged, the
commissioner discloses.
The Lagos state government is
also sensitizing members of the public about the disease, while harping on
personal hygiene and environmental sanitation.
How can you
avoid contracting gastroenteritis?
By eating well cooked meals,
washing your hands thoroughly, avoiding roadside eateries and drinking clean or
safe water.
Abayomi advises that you wash
fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating; cook food thoroughly; dispose
waste material properly, avoid open and indiscriminate defecation and keep
water containers clean.
“Citizens must ensure proper disposal of waste and ensure they avoid possible backflow connection between water and sewer system."
“It is important that citizens
wash hands with soap and running water thoroughly especially after defecation,
before eating or food preparation and when they have been in contact with a
sick person or touch any item or surface that may have been contaminated”, Abayomi says.
Stay safe out there guys!
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