October 27,2022

The number of Lassa fever cases in Nigeria has risen to 941, with Ondo, Edo and Bauchi states leading the pack of states with high rates of infection.

This was revealed in the Lassa fever situation report for week 41, which our correspondent obtained on Wednesday from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.

As of October 16, according to the report, 72 per cent of all confirmed cases were recorded in Ondo, Edo and Bauchi states.

The report also noted that suspected cases of the disease have hit 6,980.

Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic illness caused by the Lassa virus, a member of the arenavirus family of viruses.

The report read in part, “In week 41, the number of new confirmed cases is the same as reported in week 40, 2022 to 4 cases. These were reported from Ondo and Edo states.

“Cumulatively from week 1 to week 41, 2022, 173 deaths have been reported with a case fatality rate of 18.4 per cent, which is lower than the CFR for the same period in 2021 (22.6 per cent).

In total for 2022, 26 states have recorded at least one confirmed case across 105 local government areas.

‘’The states of Ondo (33 per cent), Edo (26 per cent), and Bauchi (13 per cent) account for 72 per cent of all confirmed cases.

“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.

“In reporting week 41, no new healthcare workers were affected.

“The National Lassa fever multi-partner, multi-sectoral Technical Working Group continues to coordinate the response activities at all levels