Nigeria’s Zamfara State Investigates Unidentified Illness After 38 Cases Reported
GUSAU, Nigeria: Health authorities in Zamfara State, north-western Nigeria, are investigating a cluster of 38 cases of an unidentified illness, mostly among adults in Shinkafi Local Government Area, with additional cases in Moriki, in neighbouring Zurmi.
The figure is from a situation report by the state’s Public Health Emergency Operations Centre as of 29 October. Patients have presented with fever, headache, loss of appetite, vomiting, body pains and general weakness.
A multidisciplinary team led by the state’s Director of Public Health, Dr Yusuf Abubakar, is carrying out clinical examinations, contact tracing and enhanced surveillance in the affected communities. Preliminary assessments point to possible causes including malaria, gastroenteritis and meningitis, but laboratory tests are needed to establish the cause. Health Commissioner Dr Nafisa Mohammed Maradun urged residents to seek immediate medical care if they develop any of the symptoms.
The state has faced a puzzling outbreak before. In 2024, an unknown disease that mostly affected children and women spread across Maradun, Shinkafi and Gusau, recording 505 cases and 13 deaths. That illness was characterised by abdominal swelling, fluid build-up, and an enlarged liver and spleen, and was linked to water consumption. The current cluster looks different, with a fever-type illness hitting mainly adults.
