What if i told you that coronavirus had been in Nigeria since January 2020? Well, first confirmed case of coronavirus in Nigeria was announced on the 27th of February, 2020. This was after China had been dealing with the virus since January of 2020.
Due to the absence of texting kits or even awareness regarding the viral infection in Nigeria, (at least not until Mid Februar) there is no way to confirm if the speculation is true. However, in the event of the complete lockdown in certain parts of the country, a particular poll began on Nigeria Twitter. Medical professionals are coming up to narrate their experiences treating patients early in January 2020, who according to them showed up with exact symptoms of the now coronavirus. So, does this mean coronavirus had been in Nigeria since January 2020?
One of them identified as Dr Urchilladean in twitter has this to say
I honestly believe covid19 has been with us in Nigeria since December. It’s only natural considering the amount of steady traffic between China & Nigeria. Add to this the fact that I had to handle a lot of patients around mid/late January with bizarre respiratory issues,
Culminating in myself having my own severe respiratory issue from same mid January that disappeared after 2 weeks. Started with a sore throat, then a fever, then severe dry cough that lasted about 10 days before it started to get better. The after effects still leaves me with occasional chest muscle spasms & possible costochondritis.
Find complete tweet here.
Also, another doctor who had similar experience agreed with what the first doctor said, adding that it was the worst cough and fatigue of his life.
I won’t be surprised if this proves true. I had very similar symptoms to covid mid January/early February but not as severe. Took about 3 weeks to resolve and all antibiotics used were ineffective. The worst cough and fatigue of my life.
Coronavirus Had Been in Nigeria Since January 2020
Although nothing they said can clearly prove that they or their patients might have suffered from coronavirus during those times, the similarities in the symptoms leave room for little questioning.
Also, another point they raised which is still not proven but seems to be a possibility is the inverse relationship between the temperature and the number of infected persons. Reportedly, UK and Italy experienced a decline in their infected persons numbers when the temperature (weather) began to increase. In comparison with Spain, their deadliest cases happened during the lower temperature days.
One of the doctors also pointed out that Uk, Spain and Italy reached experienced the a full outbreak in two weeks. On the other hand, it has been over a month since the first official case was reported in Nigeria and there is yet to be a community outbreak. This increases the questions in the minds of these medical professionals if the high weather temperature in Nigeria has, in any way, reduced the rate this infection rate increases.
Well, at this point it is not yet clear if coronavirus had been in Nigeria since January 2020. However, the possibility of such is not completely eliminated.
