* Bauchi, Edo, Ondo Worst-Hit States
By Tom Zaneni, Abuja
Death toll resulting from Lassa fever infections has reached 127 across 18 states in Nigeria, the country’s public health agency, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), has said.
The states of Bauchi, Edo and Ondo account for more than 70 per cent of the confirmed infections, according to the agency’s latest weekly situation report released on Tuesday, which marks its Epidemiological Week 14.
Lassa fever is a viral haemorrhagic disease transmitted primarily through contact with the urine or faeces of infected rats.
It can also spread from person to person through bodily fluids, contaminated objects, or infected medical equipment.
The symptoms include fever, sore throat, headache, vomiting, muscle pain, and, in severe cases, bleeding from body opening.
The NCDC disclosed that 674 confirmed cases have been recorded from 4,025 suspected cases between January and April 6 this year.
The Case Fatality Rate (CFR), it noted, stood at 18.8 per cent, slightly higher than the 18.5 per cent reported within the same period in 2024.
The Nigerian public health data revealed that five new deaths occurred in Week 14 alone, with 15 confirmed cases reported from Ondo, Bauchi, Edo, Taraba, Ebonyi, and Gombe states.
”The burden remains highest in Ondo (30 per cent), Bauchi (25 per cent), and Edo (16 per cent), which collectively contribute to 71 per cent of all confirmed cases,” the agency stated.
It also said that young adults between the ages of 21 and 30 remained the most affected, with the median age of infection reported at 30 years, stressing that more males than females were being affected with a male-to-female ratio of 1:0.8.
Despite the high fatality rate, NCDC said that no new healthcare worker infections were recorded during the reporting week.
It said, however, that 20 health workers have been infected since the start of the year, underscoring the continued occupational risk.
The NCDC highlighted the ongoing challenges, including late presentation of cases, poor health-seeking behaviour, high cost of treatment, and poor environmental sanitation in high-burden communities.
It further stated that in response to the outbreak, the Federal Government had activated a multi-partner, multi-sectoral incident management system (IMS) to coordinate national response efforts.
The agency also said it had launched community-based active case searches, geospatial risk mapping, and webinars for clinical management in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO), UNICEF, CEPI, and other partners.
“Rapid Response Teams have been deployed to affected states including Gombe, Nasarawa, and Benue.
”Interventions also include sensitisation campaigns, distribution of PPEs, ribavirin, body bags, and hygiene kits to treatment centres, along with the dissemination of public advisories and outbreak updates,” the NCDC said.
The agency urged Nigerians to take preventive measures seriously, especially in high-risk areas, and to report early symptoms of fever, malaise, and unexplained bleeding to the nearest health facility.
It said it would continue to stress a One-Health approach, engaging communities, human and animal health sectors, and development partners to combat the disease.
END
