Lassa fever claims 14 lives in southern Nigeria

The death toll from Lassa fever in Nigeria’s southern state of Ebonyi has increased from 10 to 14 since the start of the year, Xinhua net reported on Wednesday.

As of Tuesday, there have been a total of 29 confirmed cases of the viral hemorrhagic fever outbreak in Ebonyi, with 14 reported deaths, according to Hyacinth Ebenyi, the director of public health in Abakaliki, the state capital, during a press briefing.

The South-East state of Ebonyi has registered at least 110 suspected cases of the disease since the beginning of the year, Ebenyi said, noting that “there has been an increase in the cases of Lassa fever, and it is endemic in the state.”

Lassa fever is a disease spread to humans through food or household items contaminated with rodent urine or feces. It is reportedly transmitted when saliva, urine, and excreta of rats come into contact with humans.