The NCDC Director-General, Dr Jide Idris, disclosed this on Friday in Abuja during a news conference, saying the last contact had been discharged after completing the required monitoring period.
Idris said 13 of the 62 contacts developed fever or other symptoms during the monitoring period but tested negative for Bundibugyo Virus Disease following laboratory investigations.
He added that seven additional alerts reported in Adamawa, Rivers, Borno, Lagos and Ekiti states within three weeks were investigated, with all suspected cases testing negative.
However, the NCDC chief cautioned that the completion of contact monitoring did not amount to a formal declaration that Nigeria was free of the disease, stressing that continued surveillance remained essential.
He explained that such a declaration would depend on established public health criteria and findings from ongoing surveillance, particularly in view of continued Ebola transmission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
According to him, Nigeria had sustained heightened surveillance, with the National Emergency Operations Centre activated and the Incident Management System operating at Level Three, the highest response level for Ebola.
Idris said the index case was confirmed on 20 October in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), following an alert raised by healthcare workers through the NCDC’s event-based surveillance system.
He said contact tracing covered healthcare facilities, households and other relevant settings, while infection prevention and control measures were strengthened across healthcare facilities.
On the index patient, Idris disclosed that she was medically evacuated to Switzerland on 26 October for further treatment after receiving clinical care in Nigeria.
He said initial laboratory tests conducted upon her arrival in Switzerland confirmed that she was still positive for the virus. However, she subsequently recovered, tested negative and was discharged from hospital.
The NCDC director-general urged Nigerians to remain vigilant, warning that the completion of contact monitoring did not eliminate the possibility of Ebola being imported into the country through international travel.
He advised members of the public to seek medical attention promptly when unwell, particularly following international travel or possible exposure to infectious diseases.
Idris also warned against assuming that every fever was malaria, urging patients to provide healthcare workers with accurate information about their travel history and possible exposure to infectious diseases.
He further advised Nigerians to avoid unprotected contact with the blood and other bodily fluids of anyone suspected of having Ebola.
Healthcare workers, he said, should maintain a high index of suspicion, adhere strictly to infection prevention and control measures, and report suspected cases promptly.
He added that international travellers arriving in Nigeria were still required to complete the Nigeria Health Declaration Form before arrival and provide accurate information about their health and travel history.
During the question-and-answer session, Idris said the private hospital that initially managed the index patient had handled her condition appropriately, despite the multiple organ failures she experienced.
He explained that the patient was ambulatory and able to communicate before her evacuation to Switzerland, adding that the transfer was undertaken in line with the requirements of her organisation.
According to him, the evacuation should not be interpreted as a lack of confidence in Nigeria’s healthcare system but rather as an example of international health collaboration and mutual learning under the International Health Regulations.
Meanwhile, the Mandate Secretary of the Health Services and Environment Secretariat of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, Dr Adedolapo Fasawe, said the FCT response team had successfully completed its three-week monitoring exercise following contact with the index patient.
Fasawe said the FCT epidemiological unit received an alert from a private health facility concerning a suspected Ebola case involving a patient with a relevant travel history.
She explained that the FCT rapid response team was immediately deployed and an incident management structure established following laboratory confirmation of the infection.
The mandate secretary added that private hospitals in the FCT were accredited, familiar with established response protocols and had access to NCDC emergency contact numbers to ensure prompt reporting of similar incidents.
