Acute flaccid paralysis surveillance, Kano State, Nigeria: 2009 - 2015

Abstract

Introduction: the gold standard for detecting Poliomyelitis cases is by acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance. In August and October, 2016 Wild polio virus (WPV) type 1 and cVDPV2 were detected in Northern Nigeria. Hence there is need to close any gaps in the surveillance process. This study describes the epidemiology and trend of AFP/WPV, it also evaluates the AFP surveillance performance indicators in Kano State. Methods: secondary data analysis of Kano State AFP surveillance data from January 2009 to December 2015 was carried out. Data were obtained from Kano State Ministry of Health-WHO database. Ethical clearance was obtained from Kano State Ministry of Health. Data was analyzed using Epi-info version 7.2.0.1. Results: overall, 4644 AFP cases were reported over the study period. After stool analysis, 1058 cases were confirmed to be true AFP cases. Fifty six percent of the AFP cases were males and 83% were less than five years of age. Most (69%) of the cases received <3 doses of Oral polio vaccine (OPV), while 30% were zero dose. There was reduction in the number of AFP cases across the years from 321 cases in 2009 to 0 in 2015. WPV cases were 145 or 14%. There was increase in the prevalence of WPV in March, May and July throughout the study period. More cases (%) were reported from Ungogo local government area. Evaluation of the performance indicators showed that the AFP surveillance system was not timely, complete and Core IDSR indicators were unmet over the study period. Conclusion: AFP/WPV was prevalent among male children less than 5 years, who had received < 3 doses of OPV. Kano State AFP surveillance system did not meet the target for some of its performance indicators. We recommended improvement on OPV immunization and the AFP surveillance system in the state.