Prolonged fever that rises daily, abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhoea, weakness — typhoid fever is endemic in Lagos and commonly mismanaged. At Mascot Healthcare, we test correctly and prescribe based on current antibiotic sensitivity data, not guesswork. From ₦5,000.
Typhoid fever (Salmonella typhi infection) remains endemic in Lagos — driven by inadequate water treatment, open sewage, and street food contamination. It is transmitted through the faecal-oral route — contaminated food and water. The incubation period is 6–30 days, making the exposure event often impossible to identify.
Typhoid fever begins with a gradually rising fever — increasing by about 1°C each day — reaching 39–40°C by the end of the first week. It is accompanied by malaise, loss of appetite, headache, and abdominal discomfort. Unlike malaria, the fever is sustained rather than cyclical. In the second week, constipation (more common than diarrhoea initially) may alternate with diarrhoea; a rose-coloured rash may appear on the trunk (often missed on dark skin).
The Widal test — measuring antibodies to S. typhi — is the most widely used diagnostic test for typhoid in Nigeria. However, it has significant limitations: it can be positive from a previous infection or vaccination, it requires a significant antibody titre (usually 1:160 or higher), and it becomes positive only in the second week of illness. Interpreting a single Widal result without clinical context leads to massive over-diagnosis of typhoid in Lagos.
Blood culture is the gold standard — it isolates the actual bacteria and provides sensitivity data for antibiotic selection. At Mascot Healthcare, we offer both Widal testing and blood culture, and we interpret results in clinical context rather than treating every positive Widal as confirmed typhoid.
Multidrug-resistant (MDR) Salmonella typhi is increasingly reported in Nigeria — resistant to ampicillin, chloramphenicol, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (the traditional first-line agents). Fluoroquinolone resistance is also increasing. Current first-line treatment in Nigeria should be azithromycin (oral, uncomplicated) or ceftriaxone (IV, complicated). Self-treatment with ciprofloxacin purchased from a pharmacy is no longer reliably effective.
We test appropriately and prescribe based on evidence.
Widal test and antibiotic prescription at Mascot Healthcare, Akoka. Walk-in from ₦5,000.