Nigeria’s Lassa fever cases rise to 989 as death toll hits 178

A total of 178 people in Nigeria have died from Lassa fever in 2022.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control said this in its latest Lassa fever situation report.

Lassa fever, an acute viral hemorrhagic disease, is transmitted to humans through contact with food, household items contaminated by infected rodents or contaminated persons.

According to the report, four new cases were reported in Ondo, Edo, and Benue states from November 14 to November 20, with one fatality recorded during the reporting week.

The agency said from January 1 to November 20, a total of 7,492 suspected cases of Lassa fever were recorded, out of which 989 were confirmed positive.

“Cumulatively from week 1 to week 46, 2022, 178 deaths have been reported with a case fatality rate (CFR) of 18.0% which is lower than the CFR for the same period in 2021 (21.1%),” the NCDC report reads 

“In total for 2022, 26 States have recorded at least one confirmed case across 107 Local Government Areas.

“Of all confirmed cases, 71% are from Ondo (33%), Edo (26%), and Bauchi (12%) States.

“The predominant age group affected is 21-30 years (Range: 0 to 90 years, Median Age: 30 years). The male-to-female ratio for confirmed cases is 1:0.8.

“The number of suspected cases has increased compared to that reported for the same period in 2021.”

The NCDC said its response activities include the implementation of human centred design risk communication activities in most affected states, and training of health care workers for clinical management of Lassa fever.