The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has said that six healthcare workers were infected with Lassa fever within one week, raising fresh concerns about occupational exposure among frontline health personnel.
The NCDC disclosed this on Monday in its Lassa Fever Situation Report for Epidemiological Week 9, covering February 23 to March 1.
According to the report, the infections occurred as the country continues to battle the viral haemorrhagic disease across several states.
The agency said that cumulatively, 37 healthcare workers had been infected with Lassa fever in 2026.
It stated that Nigeria recorded 65 confirmed cases of Lassa fever during the week under review, a slight decline from the 77 cases reported the previous week.
The confirmed cases were recorded in Benue, Ondo, Bauchi, Taraba, Edo, Plateau and Nasarawa states.
The public health agency also said that 460 suspected cases were reported during the week, with nine deaths recorded among confirmed cases, representing a Case Fatality Rate of 13.9 per cent.
Cumulatively, the NCDC said Nigeria has recorded 2,446 suspected cases and 469 confirmed cases of Lassa fever in 2026, with 109 deaths so far.
It added that the overall case fatality rate stands at 23.2 per cent, higher than the 18.7 per cent recorded during the same period in 2025.
According to the agency, 18 states and 69 local government areas have recorded at least one confirmed case this year.
The NCDC attributed the increasing fatalities partly to late presentation of cases at health facilities, poor health-seeking behaviour and inadequate awareness in some high-burden communities.
Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic illness caused by the Lassa virus, first identified in 1969 in the town of Lassa in Borno State.
The disease is endemic in Nigeria and several parts of West Africa. It is primarily transmitted to humans through contact with food or household items contaminated by the urine or faeces of infected multimammate rats.
Human-to-human transmission can also occur, particularly in healthcare settings where infection prevention and control measures are inadequate.
Health authorities say that while many infections are mild or asymptomatic, about 20 per cent of cases can develop into severe illness characterised by fever, headache, vomiting, bleeding and organ failure.
Meanwhile, the NCDC said it had activated a multi-partner Incident Management System to coordinate response efforts across the country.
It added that response activities include active case search, contact tracing, distribution of personal protective equipment to health facilities and the deployment of rapid response teams to affected states.
The agency urged healthcare workers to maintain a high index of suspicion for Lassa fever and adhere strictly to infection prevention and control measures to reduce hospital-based transmission.
NAN
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everydayAdvertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com