Nigeria is expected to be declared officially free of Ebola on Monday, after six weeks with no new cases.
Africa’s most populous country won praise for its swift response after an infected Liberian diplomat brought the disease there in July.
The World Health Organization officially declared Senegal Ebola-free on Friday.
The current outbreak has killed more than 4,500 people in West Africa, most in Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone
An estimated 70% of those infected have died in those countries.
Quick, aggressive action
The World Health Organization can officially declare an Ebola outbreak over if two incubation periods of 21 days pass with no new cases.
The last reported case in Nigeria was discovered on 5 September.
Schoolchildren in Nigeria wash their hands as they learn about Ebola preventionThe outbreak there began when Patrick Sawyer, an American-Liberian citizen, was diagnosed with the illness in July.
Nigeria declared a national public health emergency and Sawyer later died of the disease, along with seven Nigerians.
These included Dr Ameyo Stella Adadevoh, who diagnosed Sawyer and is credited with helping contain the outbreak at its source.
John Vertefeuille from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that Nigeria had taken the right steps to contain the outbreak.
“Nigeria acted quickly and early and on a large scale” he told AFP news agency. “They acted aggressively, especially in terms of contact-tracing”, he added.
Ebola virus disease (EVD)
- Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
- Spread by body fluids, such as blood and saliva
- Fatality rate can reach 90% – but current outbreak has mortality rate of about 70%
- Incubation period is two to 21 days
- There is no proven vaccine or cure
- Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting can help recovery
- Fruit bats, a delicacy for some West Africans, are considered to be virus’s natural host
Source: BBC