NCDC begins contact tracing as UK returnee dies of Lassa fever

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has confirmed a case of Lassa fever in a 31-year-old physician who returned from a trip to the UK.

In a statement, the NCDC relayed that it was notified of the case on March 5, by the Ondo state ministry of health.

The agency said the physician, who was being managed at a private health facility in Ondo, passed on in early March.

“The patient departed Nigeria 19/02/2025 and returned 27/02/2025. Samples were taken late on Friday, 28/02/2025 on a suspicion of Lassa fever, but the patient unfortunately passed away in the early hours of Saturday, 01/03/2025,” the statement reads.

“The laboratory investigation returned a result was Lassa Fever positive on PCR on Tuesday 04/03/2025. The patient was said to have visited his fiancée in Edo state, as well as family and friends before traveling.”

The NCDC said to enhance state and international level coordination of all control and management efforts, the Ondo state ministry of health has begun contact tracing.

The NCDC said all necessary in-country structures have been mobilised to ensure all possible contacts are traced and monitored, and information has been shared with all relevant authorities in line with the International Health Regulations (2005), with contact tracing efforts also ongoing in the UK.

The NCDC added that as of March 2, 2025, 2,728 suspected cases, 535 confirmed cases, and 98 deaths have been recorded across 14 states in Nigeria, with a case fatality rate of 18.3 percent.

Five states account for 91 percent of confirmed cases: Ondo (31 percent), Bauchi (24 percent), Edo (17 percent), Taraba (16 percent), and Ebonyi (3 percent).

“Ten local government areas make up 68 per cent of confirmed cases, namely: Owo, Akure South, Etsako West, Kirfi, Akoko South-West, Bali, Esan North-East, Bauchi, Toro, and Jalingo,” the NCDC said in its situation report.

Lassa fever is a zoonotic disease, meaning that humans become infected from contact with infected animals, which are mainly rats.