ABUJA, March 18 — The death toll of Lassa fever in Nigeria this year has risen to 112 despite government measures to cut infections across the country, the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) said on Friday.
A total of 3,079 cases of Lassa fever have been reported across the West African country since January, with 630 positive cases so far confirmed, the NCDC said in a statement.
Out of the figure, 45 health workers were infected by Lassa fever between January and March, the public health agency said. Some 87 local government areas across 23 out of Nigeria’s 36 states have reported the disease so far.
Lassa fever is usually transmitted when the saliva, urine, and excreta of multi-mammalian rats come into contact with humans. Human-to-human transmission is rare but can occur through contact with the body fluids of an infected person.
In some cases, Lassa fever has similar symptoms to malaria, appearing between one and three weeks after exposure to the virus. In mild cases, the disease causes fever, fatigue, weakness, and headache.
Secondary transmission from person to person can also occur following exposure to the virus in the blood, tissue, urine, feces, or other bodily secretions of an infected patient, the NCDC said.
The predominant age group so far affected by the disease ranged between 21 and 30 years, the disease control agency stated.
The NCDC noted that the animal vector for the Lassa virus, the multimammate rat, is found throughout the West African region, thereby calling on neighboring countries to stay alert on the spread of the Lassa fever.
The disease control agency said it is distributing medical response supplies to states and treatment centers, as part of measures to control the spread of the disease. (Xinhua)
