- Nigeria records 54 Lassa fever cases and 10 deaths across six states.
- Ondo, Edo, and Bauchi account for 78% of confirmed cases.
- NCDC activates emergency response to combat rising infection rates.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has reported 10 deaths and 54 confirmed cases of Lassa fever out of 196 suspected cases recorded between December 30, 2024, and January 5, 2025.
The cases were documented across six states, Ondo, Bauchi, Edo, Taraba, Ebonyi, and Kogi, and 20 local government areas.
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According to the NCDC’s Lassa fever situation report, the number of confirmed cases decreased from 70 in the last week of 2024 to 54 in the first week of 2025.
The agency revealed that the case fatality rate (CFR) in the reporting period is 18.5%, a significant increase compared to 11.3% in the same period last year.
Cumulatively, 78% of all confirmed cases originated from Ondo, Edo, and Bauchi states, while the remaining 22% were reported from the other affected states.
The NCDC emphasized that while suspected cases have increased compared to 2024, no healthcare workers were affected during the first week of 2025.
The National Lassa fever multi-partner and multi-sectoral Incident Management System has been activated to coordinate response efforts at all levels.
In 2024, Nigeria recorded 9,685 suspected cases, 1,187 confirmed cases, and 191 deaths across 28 states and 138 local government areas.
The emergency operations center for Lassa fever, first activated last year, continues to operate as the risk assessment for the disease remains high.
Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic illness spread through contact with food or household items contaminated by rodent urine or feces.
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The NCDC advises the public to maintain proper hygiene, store food securely, and eliminate rodents in living spaces to reduce infection risks.
The agency calls for vigilance and proactive measures, stressing the importance of early reporting and swift treatment for suspected cases to curb the spread of the disease.
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