Arboviruses, an Emerging Threat to Public Health: Focus on Nigeria, West Africa

Abstract

Backgrounds: For centuries, arboviruses have been spreading like a wildfire across the world, especially in developing countries like Nigeria with inadequate diagnostic and disease surveillance facilities, causing infinite death and suffering in human and animal populations. Therefore, this study aimed to discuss the impact of arboviruses on public health with a focus on Nigeria and West Africa. Materials & Methods: About 100 research articles were downloaded from online journal databases such as PubMed, Google Scholar, and African Journals OnLine (AJOL) with the following keywords: arboviruses, emerging, public health importance, Nigeria, and Africa. Findings: A total of 50 articles were used to write this review after a thorough screening. Arboviral infections caused by yellow fever, Rift Valley fever, West Nile, dengue, and chikungunya viruses were reported in Nigeria and discovered based on seroprevalence studies. Conclusion: Hemorrhagic fever, abortion, neonatal death, and decreased production in livestock are the most obvious features of arboviral infections; therefore, they are of public health and economic importance. Thus, there is a need to strengthen and refurbish the healthcare system in the country by employing preventive and control measures, vaccination campaigns, and other strategies to prevent the occurrence of diseases in the future.