Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Enugu State Government has moved to quell growing public anxiety following the death of a paediatric patient at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku-Ozalla, insisting that the state has no confirmed case of diphtheria and that the suspected case that triggered panic was actually tonsillitis. The clarification was delivered by the Commissioner for Health, Professor George Ugw, during a briefing in Enugu on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, following a wave of rumours that swept through the state capital after reports emerged that a child had died from a suspected diphtheria infection.
Ugwu said the Public Health and Surveillance Unit of the State Ministry of Health had been placed on alert to ensure appropriate prevention and control measures, as well as early detection where necessary. He explained that a few days earlier, there was a report of a suspected case of diphtheria at UNTH, which the ministry's team immediately followed up. However, the diagnosis of diphtheria could not be sustained or confirmed, and the patient, who was rumoured and suspected to have diphtheria, was instead found to have tonsillitis. The commissioner noted that contact tracing and other appropriate measures were ongoing, adding that no case of diphtheria had been diagnosed or confirmed in the state. He further explained that the suspected patient had been traced to his home in Achara Layout, Enugu, and had no record of travel and had not been to the northern part of the country as rumoured. The surveillance and tracing teams had also contacted his family members and others, but no trace of diphtheria was established.
Ugwu stressed that Enugu State was never at high risk of contracting diphtheria, citing the state's robust routine and mop-up vaccination programme, particularly for Penta 3, which provides effective immunisation against diphtheria for a lifetime. He disclosed that in 2026, the state recorded 91 per cent coverage on Penta 3 vaccination, which is above the national target or threshold. He urged residents to remain calm and avoid spreading rumours or unverified information, and to seek medical attention promptly if they develop symptoms of any sickness. He also called on parents and caregivers to ensure children are fully immunised with diphtheria-containing vaccines, and urged healthcare workers to maintain appropriate standard precautions, promptly notify suspected cases through the surveillance system, and ensure appropriate infection prevention and control measures.
The University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, however, has painted a more cautious picture in its own statement issued on the same day. The hospital's management confirmed that it had commenced contact tracing following the recent management of a clinically suspected case of diphtheria at its Children's Emergency Room. The patient, according to the statement signed by Dr. Charles Nonyelu, Chairman of the Medical Advisory Committee, received full medical intervention upon admission but regrettably passed away two days later despite intensive efforts by the attending medical team. A subsequent clinical post-mortem review indicated that the severe symptoms may have been caused by severe pharyngotonsillitis with massive exudate, rather than diphtheria as initially suspected. Despite the revised clinical assessment, hospital authorities confirmed that comprehensive contact tracing was underway as a precautionary measure to monitor anyone who had close contact with the deceased. The hospital also completed a standard decontamination exercise of the Children's Emergency Room in strict compliance with infection prevention and control protocols.
The hospital management reassured the public of its capacity to handle infectious disease cases, emphasising that UNTH had previously managed and successfully resolved sporadic cases of diphtheria. It noted that the tertiary health facility possessed the requisite specialist expertise, isolation infrastructure and medical equipment needed to handle such cases effectively. It urged individuals or parents who notice symptoms of diphtheria in themselves or their wards to seek immediate medical attention at the nearest certified healthcare facility rather than resorting to self-medication.
The conflicting accounts from the state government and the hospital have left residents uncertain about what actually happened. The government says there is no confirmed case of diphtheria and that the patient had tonsillitis. The hospital says the case was clinically suspected as diphtheria, that a post-mortem review raised the possibility of pharyngotonsillitis, and that contact tracing is still ongoing as a precaution. The two positions are not necessarily contradictory. A clinical suspicion of diphtheria can be revised after further review, and contact tracing can be a precautionary measure even when the diagnosis is uncertain. But the difference in tone between the government's firm denial and the hospital's cautious language has done little to calm public nerves.
The panic that gripped Enugu residents is understandable in the context of Nigeria's broader diphtheria crisis. According to data from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the country has recorded 19,799 suspected cases, 15,309 confirmed cases and 517 confirmed deaths across 26 states and 357 local government areas. Eight states, including Kano, Bauchi, Borno, Katsina, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kaduna and Plateau, account for over 98 per cent of the confirmed cases. The outbreak has been driven largely by low vaccination coverage, with 68 per cent of confirmed cases involving unvaccinated people. Several states have taken drastic measures to contain the spread, including the closure of schools and the extension of resumption dates. Zamfara State recently extended school resumption by two weeks, while Plateau State ordered the temporary shutdown of all public and private primary and secondary schools. The fear that the outbreak could spread to the South-East, where vaccination coverage is generally higher but not universal, is therefore not irrational. It is a fear born of watching a preventable disease claim hundreds of lives in other parts of the country and wondering whether the same fate awaits communities that have not yet seen a confirmed case.
For now, Enugu State remains without a confirmed case of diphtheria. The government has urged residents to disregard rumours and rely on verified information. The hospital has urged the public to remain calm and vigilant. The patient who died has been buried, and the contact tracing continues. But the questions raised by the incident will not be laid to rest by a press briefing alone. If the diagnosis was tonsillitis, why was diphtheria suspected in the first place? What symptoms did the patient present that led the attending medical team to consider diphtheria as a possible diagnosis? And if the post-mortem review raised the possibility of pharyngotonsillitis, why is contact tracing still necessary? The answers to these questions matter, not just for Enugu but for every state in Nigeria that is watching the outbreak unfold and wondering whether its own health system is prepared for what may come next.
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