The Edo State government has confirmed the outbreak of Lassa Fever in the state.
The state Commissioner of Health Dr Cyril Oshiomhole, who spoke in Benin, the Edo state capital, last Friday, confirmed the outbreak of the disease.
Dr Oshiomhole, who was at the Emergency Operation Centre with representatives of the National Centre for Disease control and Prevention (NCDC), the World Health Organisation (WHO). and other public health partners, said within two weeks from December 30 last year to 20th January 20, this year, no fewer than 336 suspected cases, 36 confirmed ones and eight deaths have been recorded.
The Director, Institute of Viral and Emergent Pathogens of Irruah Specialist Teaching Hospital, Dr Joseph Okoeguale in a telephone chat with ThisNigeria, disclosed that of the eight deaths in the state, two were pregnant women, three were adults and the remaining two were children. “All of them died inside our isolation centre in Irruah while one died outside the isolation ward,” he said.
It would be recalled that the NCDC Director-General, Dr Jide Idris had said as at December 30, 2024 there were 226 suspected cases of Lassa Fever, with 70 confirmed and 11 deaths across the country. The cases were reported in Edo, Ondo, Bauchi , Taraba, Ebonyi, Enugu and Plateau states.
Reports from the NCDC in Abuja indicated that about 22 people had died of Lassa Fever in seven states of the country within two weeks.
The Personal Assistant to the DG of NCDC Adebayo Omotosho told ThisNigeria that the figure of 22 deaths in seven states has not yet been confirmed.
