Lassa Fever Arrives Lagos, Govt Calls For Caution

The Lagos State Government on Wednesday confirmed a case of Lassa fever outbreak in the state, saying the patient has been isolated.

Prof. Akin Abayomi, the State Commissioner for Health, who made this known in a statement, said that the patient was currently in isolation ward at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Lassa fever has been ravaging in over 19 states in the country.

Abayomi, who did not provide details about the patient and location, reassured Lagos residents that the situation was under control, advising them not to panic over the situation.

He said that the state government, in active collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) was working assiduously to stem the spread of the disease in the state.

“The Ministry of Health, through Epidemiology, Biosecurity and Global Health Directorate, is currently carrying out ‘contact tracing’ to determine those who may have been infected in line with the international standards, while we beef up our other surveillance strategies,“ he said.

Outlining strategies put in place by the state to control the disease, Abayomi explained that the state government was maintaining relevant surveillance activities through its disease surveillance officers at the local government level to prevent the spread of the disease.

He said that Lassa fever should be suspected in any person with persistent high fever not responding to standard treatment for malaria and typhoid fever or bleeding from body surface.

Abayomi reiterated the need for members of the public to ensure and maintain adequate personal hygiene and environmental sanitation at all times, as part of prevention and control measures against the spread of the disease.

He stressed that the prevention and control of the disease remains a shared responsibility of all citizens through observance of the highest possible standards of personal and community hygiene, as well as environmental sanitation.

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