Epidemiologists in Lagos State have identified measles as the’strange’ killer disease that has wreaked havoc in the Eti-Osa part of the State.

The researchers, at the conclusion of their findings into the cause of the outbreak, said markers in the blood samples collected from patients showed activities of measles virus.

Announcing the findings on Monday, State Commissioner of Health, Dr. Jide Idris, said that water samples also confirmed traces of bacterial as a result of “serious” poor environmental issues in the slum community.

It would be recalled that the disease outbreak in Otodo Gbame community of Eti-Osa local government area has killed no fewer than 17 children between the age of five months and six years, while about 34 have been line-listed for close monitoring.

Idris on Monday said that from analysis conducted on blood samples (and throat swabs) and water samples conducted at the Virology Reference Laboratory (in LUTH) and Lagos State Drug Quality Control Laboratory (DQCL), LASUTH, Ikeja, “what we are dealing with is actually measles.”

“Different tests have confirmed that. There is a marker in the blood that shows active activities of the (measles) virus in that community. The cause of this has to do with environmental sanitation in that place.

“It is a slum area, so sanitation and personal hygiene are totally off course. With a lot of open defecation, the water system was contaminated and in the water samples, we detected a lot of bacteria,” he said.

Measles is an airborne disease which spreads easily through the coughs and sneezes of those infected. It may also be spread through contact with saliva or nasal secretions.

Nine out of 10 people who are not immune and share living space with an infected person will catch it. Measles affects about 20 million people a year, primarily in the developing areas of Africa and Asia. It causes the most vaccine-preventable deaths of any disease.

Idris added that while measles vaccination has since commenced with health awareness in the affected community, they had also done active case search, but no new death has thus far been recorded at least in the last one week of their intervention.

Responding to questions on why the community experienced measles outbreak shortly after statewide measles vaccination exercise was conducted, the commissioner said that the Otodo Gbame people were apparently missed while the vaccination exercise lasted.

In his words: “The truth is that very few people know that, that community exist and it was missed during the vaccination exercise. If you have a community where children have not been vaccinated, measles have a way of dealing with the immunity of such children and leaving them with complications. It can also be complicated by severe malnutrition. It can affect their brains and many parts of the body.

“We heard that Otodo Gbame is a reclaimed area and sand filled for something else entirely. A lot of people come into Lagos and just take over different places and since they don’t have adequate facilities for all the sanitation required, this (disease outbreak) is what will happen.

“That place has no water system or sewage system among others. If it was actually planned for people to live in, then it will have at least a primary health care centre in the minimum,” he said.

In collaboration with the Ministry of Environment, he said efforts were in the works to conduct mapping of all slum areas in the State to prevent future recurrence.

GUARDIAN