18th December, 2021
By Yakubu Uba/Maiduguri
Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) has treated 8,036 children infected with measles in Maiduguri and its environs, Mr Abdulkareem Yakubu, its Field Communication Officer said.
The treatment was between January and October.
“From January to October 2021, our teams at the only paediatric hospital in Gwange treated 2,974 children for measles on an in-patient basis while 2,545 other children were treated at the out-patient department within the same period.
“During an outreach in Zabarmari between mid-February and July 2021, our mobile clinic team provided treatment for 2,517 children suffering from measles, Yakubu said.
He also noted that 2,465 severely malnourished children were admitted in MSF In-patient Therapeutic Feeding Centre (ITFC) in Maiduguri, indicating 13 per cent increase in number of patients compared to last year.
“At the same time, enrolment in our out-patient therapeutic feeding programme continues to increase, with 4,144 patients enrolled this year, more than 50 per cent more patients than were seen in same period in 2020.
“Out of all admissions for severe acute malnutrition, more than 80 per cent were for children living in households displaced by ongoing conflict in Borno, ” Yakubu said.