Health Officials in Ondo state, South-west Nigeria have confirmed a new case of the deadly Lassa fever.
The victim who came from Edo state went to the Federal Medical Centre to treat malaria fever, but it was discovered that the victim had contacted the deadly disease.
Lassa fever is an acute febrile illness, with bleeding and death in severe cases caused by the virus with an incubation period of six to twenty one days.
The Ondo State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Dayo Adeyanju, while confirming the incident asked residents to be calm, as the government had already taken necessary steps to prevent the spread of the disease.
According to him, the victim has been sent back to Edo state.
He said, It is expected; we have already said it, and that is why we are proactive about it to ensure that if anybody has symptoms, they will be detected in good time, enabling us to quickly curtail it.
Also, there would be active surveillance, where we look around to see if anybody has been infected. Already, contact tracing has begun on this one.
He further explained that the case was a suspected one at the FMC, Owo, saying the victim had fever and other symptoms that suggested that it was Lassa fever.
He said the doctor took the blood sample of the victim and referred it to Irrua Specialist Hospital in Edo State where it was diagnosed.
The commissioner, who expressed assurance that the disease would not spread in the state, also confirmed that the victim had been transferred to Irrua Specialist Hospital for adequate treatment.
At least four states in Nigeria have confirmed cases of Lassa fever within the ending of August and early September, the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, said.
The number of recorded cases peaked in 2012 when 1723 cases with 112 fatalities were recorded.
Source: TV360, HWN Africa.
: 2016-09-08 17:48:42 | : 1588