The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) on Friday, August 9, 2024, said it has registered seven additional new cases of Lassa fever.
The cases, the centre said were registered in Edo, Bauchi and Kogi states.
In a statement shared on its official, the NCDC said the seven cases were recorded between July 22 and July 28.
Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic (excessive bleeding) illness transmitted to humans through contact with food or household items contaminated by infected rodents or persons.
Its symptoms include fever, headache, sore throat, general body weakness, cough, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle pains, chest pain, and in severe cases, unexplained bleeding from ears, eyes, nose, mouth, and other body openings.
According to the NCDC, Edo State reported four cases, Bauchi two, while Kogi recorded one with no deaths during the period under review.
It said 163 deaths were, however, reported in 2024, with a Case Fatality Rate (CFR) of 17.0 per cent, lower than the 17.3 per cent recorded during the same period in 2023.
In addition, 66 percent of confirmed cases in 2024 were from Ondo, Edo and Bauchi, while 34 per cent were reported from 25 states.
“In total for 2024, 28 states recorded at least one confirmed case of Lassa fever across 125 local government areas,” NCDC said.
The centre also listed some of the challenges faced in the fight against Lassa fever to include late presentation of cases leading to increase in CFR and poor health-seeking behaviour due to high cost of treatment, as well as clinical management of the disease.
Others are poor environmental sanitation conditions observed in high-burden communities and poor awareness in communities.
It stated that individuals between the ages of 31 and 40 were those predominantly affected in the reporting period, however, added that no health worker was infected.
