Ebola: Expert Urges Hygiene, Prompt Reporting of Symptoms

A public health expert, Dr. Blossom Maduafokwa, has urged Nigerians to maintain good hygiene, avoid contact with potentially infected animals and promptly report suspected Ebola cases following the country’s first confirmed case of the Bundibugyo strain.

Maduafokwa, a consultant public health physician and lecturer at the University of Lagos, gave the advice in an interview with our correspondent, stressing the importance of early detection and prompt reporting in preventing transmission.

“Ebola is contacted through contact with infected blood and bodily fluids,” she said, adding that people could also become infected through contact with infected animals, including chimpanzees, baboons and certain antelopes, or by handling and preparing their meat.

She listed sudden fever, headache, sore throat, body aches and extreme tiredness among the early symptoms, noting that they could resemble other illnesses.

“The incubation period for Ebola virus disease is between two to 21 days,” she said, urging health workers to establish patients’ travel histories and possible exposure to infected people or animals.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) confirmed the country’s first Bundibugyo strain case on Oct. 20, 2026, in a woman who travelled from Uganda to Abuja.

Health Minister Muhammad Pate confirmed that the patient had been flown to Switzerland for treatment.

The NCDC’s Oct. 24 situation report said 53 contacts had been identified and were being monitored.

The Bundibugyo strain differs from the Zaire strain responsible for the 2014-2016 West African Ebola outbreak, which claimed thousands of lives, including Nigerian physician Stella Ameyo Adadevoh.

Vaccines developed for the Zaire strain are not specifically approved for the Bundibugyo strain.

Maduafokwa advised Nigerians to wash their hands regularly and report anyone who develops possible symptoms after relevant travel or exposure.

“If you have someone around you who has these symptoms and has some travel history, ensure that you report to authorities so that it can be investigated,” she said.

She urged people who develop symptoms after possible exposure to contact the NCDC on 6232 for guidance before visiting a health facility.

The World Health Organisation is supporting Nigerian authorities with case investigations, contact tracing and infection prevention measures.