Nigeria Death toll from Lassa fever hits 103

Since the onset of the Lassa fever outbreak in Nigeria, no fewer than 103 people have lost their lives to the disease, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has disclosed.

This was made known in the weekly situation report released by the health agency on Wednesday.

According to the agency, there has been a spike in the number of suspected and confirmed cases as well as in deaths from the disease.

The disease has become a yearly epidemic in Nigeria as it is diagnosed all year round, but peaks between November and May.

As of February 16, the number of newly confirmed cases increased from 109 cases in week six, to 115.

These were reported from 16 states: Ondo, Edo, Ebonyi, Kano, Kogi, Kaduna, Taraba, Plateau, Bauchi, Enugu, Abia, Benue, Borno, Gombe, Sokoto and Katsina.

Cumulatively from week one to week seven, 103 deaths have been reported with a case fatality rate (CFR) of 17.6 per cent. This is lower than the CFR for the same period in 2019 pegged at 21.1 per cent.

Also in the reporting week, two new healthcare workers were affected in Bauchi and Katsina states, bringing the number of affected health workers since January till date to 20.

So far for 2020, 26 states have recorded at least one confirmed case across 101 local government areas.

Meanwhile, as at the time of releasing the report on Wednesday, more cases have been recorded across the country, with the latest confirmed case in Lagos State.