Lassa Fever Update from the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC)

Lassa fever is a viral infection caused by the Lassa fever virus. The virus is primarily transmitted to humans via contact with excreta from rats. The disease occurs throughout the year, but more cases are recorded during the dry season.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has intensified its response to the Lassa Fever outbreak as the number of confirmed Lassa Fever cases from January 1 this year rose to 317 as at the 25th of February 2018, crossing the total number of confirmed cases recorded in 2017.

Three states in Nigeria; Edo, Ondo and Ebonyi State carry 85% of the burden of Lassa fever cases currently. Read the full update here

Situation Report:
From 1st January to 25th February 2018, a total of 1081 suspected cases, and 90 deaths have been reported from 18 active States- (Edo, Ondo, Bauchi, Nasarawa, Ebonyi, Anambra, Benue, Kogi, Imo, Plateau, Lagos, Taraba, Delta, Osun, Rivers, FCT, Gombe and Ekiti)

Fourteen Health Care workers have been affected in six states –Ebonyi (7), Nasarawa (1), Kogi (1), Benue (1), Ondo (1) and Edo (3) with four deaths in Ebonyi (3) and Kogi (1)

A total of 2845 contacts have been identified from 18 active states and 1897 are currently being followed up

Responses:
National Lassa Fever multi-partner multi-agency Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) continues to coordinate the response activities at all levels. The EOC operates on six major pillars: Coordination, Surveillance/Epidemiology, Case management/Infection Prevention and Control/Safe Burial, Risk Communication, Logistics and supplies and Laboratory. Response activities revolve around these pillars. The members of the EOC are drawn from various Ministries including the Ministries of Agriculture and Environment, as well as partner agencies. As the outbreak continues with more states reporting confirmed cases, the NCDC encourages all states to set up state-level EOC for proper and better management of response activities.

With the activation of the National Reference Laboratory in Abuja, the testing capacity in Nigeria has increased from two to three laboratories. This is in addition to the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital and the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, which were previously the only two laboratories with the capacity to diagnose Lassa fever.

NCDC is collaborating with the Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA) and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in Edo, Ondo and Anambra States to support case management

NCDC deployed teams to four Benin Republic-border states (Kebbi, Kwara, Niger and Oyo) for enhanced surveillance activities

The World Health Organisation (WHO) is scaling up its support of the response at National and State levels.

Contacts:
NCDC Toll-free Number: 0800-970000-10
SMS: 08099555577
WhatsApp: 07087110839
Twitter/Facebook: @NCDCgov

Resource:
What you need to know to protect yourself from Lassa Fever: here

Message From NCDC:
If You Experience Any Of These Symptoms, Report Immediately To The Nearest Health Centre/Hospital. The Actions Expected From A Healthcare Worker Would Be To Test For Malaria And Other Common Causes Of Fever. If These Tests Are Negative, Lassa Fever Should Be Considered.

Just like petrol scarcity this govt has left Lassa fever to express itself unabated for months unending with no practical solution in sight just like the four month old sustained fuel scarcity