Lassa fever death toll rises to 144, says NCDC
The death toll from the latest round of Lassa fever outbreak in Nigeria has risen to 144, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said on Thursday with a case fatality rate of 16.8 per cent.
READ ALSO:
| ‘Don’t panic’ says US woman who recovered from coronavirus |
The NCDC said this is lower than the case fatality rate for the same period in 2019 which stood at 23.3 per cent, which highlights improved levels of detection and case management for Lassa fever across the country.
Director General of the NCDC, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, while giving an update on the disease, stated that in week 10, the number of new confirmed cases decreased from 85 cases in week nine to 81 cases.
He said that these cases were reported from 15 states, Edo, Ondo, Ebonyi, Bauchi, Taraba, Plateau, Benue, Kogi, Anambra, Delta, Enugu, Adamawa, Kaduna, Sokoto and Kebbi.
The NCDC chief executive said that in total for 2020, 27 states have recorded at least one confirmed case across 119 local government areas.
Ihekweazu noted the number of suspected cases has significantly increased compared to that reported for the same period in 2019, stating that the NCDC has rapidly scaled up its preparedness and response for Lassa fever outbreak across the country.
According to him, in the last eight months, health workers from the major treatment centres have been trained, risk communications had increased and logistics had also improved to ensure continuous supply of medical and laboratory commodities.
He disclosed that two new health care workers were affected in Edo and Bauchi states in the reporting week 10, even as the NCDC has also provided infection prevention control guidance for all health workers in the country.
The NCDC stressed that Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic illness of two to 21 days duration that occurs and is transmitted to humans via contact with food or household items contaminated with rodent urine or faeces.
The NCDC boss noted that person-to-person transmission through contact with body fluids such as semen, urine and blood can also occur, particularly in hospitals lacking adequate infection prevention and control measures.
Ihekweazu however, stated that early supportive care with rehydration and symptomatic treatment improves survival.
He reiterated that NCDC would continue to support affected states through deployment of inter-disciplinary rapid response teams and provision of medical supplies including Rivabrin for treatment of Lassa fever patients.
The NCDC boss again called on Nigerians to continue to keep their environments clean and store food in tight containers to avoid contact with rats.
