Lassa Fever Kills 85 In Six Weeks in Nigeria

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed 68 more cases of Lassa fever, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 531.

The NCDC, in its Lassa fever situation report for week six released on Monday, revealed that the disease killed 15 persons in one week as the death toll rose to 85 from January to February 12, 2023.

According to the report, the number of suspected cases increased compared to that reported for the same period in 2022.

The suspected cases of the infection for week six in 2022 were 1,631 while the suspected for week six in 2023 are 2,244.

Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic illness caused by the Lassa virus, a member of the arena-virus family of viruses. It is endemic in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, and Nigeria.

Neighboring countries are also at risk.