The Plateau State Commissioner for
Health, Dr Kuden Deyin on Tuesday confirmed another case of Lassa fever in the
state.
Deyin who made the confirmation to
our correspondent in Jos, said the patient who was brought-in from Garkawa in
Mikang Local Government Area was displaying symptoms of Lassa fever.
“After blood sample was taken from
the patient, the result came out positive and the patient is currently
responding to treatment at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH).
“The state has so far recorded four
cases of Lassa fever and three out of the four patients are responding to
treatment at the Jos University Teaching Hospital while one patient died,’’ he
said.
The commissioner advised the public
to ensure that they maintain a very high standard of personal hygiene and
ensure that their environments are kept clean.
“Food stuffs should be kept in
rodent-proof containers and people should also desist from drying their food
stuffs on the highway, as they never can tell when rats will defecate or
urinate on them.
“Health workers should be on the
alert while private medical practitioners are advised not to keep patients who
manifest symptoms of Lassa fever for long.
“Rather such patients should be
referred to tertiary health institutions for prompt medical attention as time
was of the essence in treating Lassa fever,’’ the commissioner said.
On July 8, students from Federal
Government Girls College, were rushed from the school clinic to the Jos
University Teaching Hospital and it was observed that they were displaying
symptoms of Lassa fever.
Their blood samples were taken to
Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) were it was discovered that three out
of the four samples were positive.
Lassa fever, also known as Lassa
hemorrhagic fever (LHF), is a type of viral hemorrhagic fever caused by the
Lassa virus. Many of those infected by the virus do not develop symptoms.
When symptoms occur they typically
include fever, weakness, headaches, vomiting, and muscle pains.
The virus is commonly transmitted by
rats and is said to be responsible for about 5000 deaths every year.
Recently the Nigerian Medical
Association (NMA) alerted Nigerians on the need to raise their guard against another
outbreak of Lassa fever and Ebola.
Dr Tunde Olawepo, the Chairman of the
association in Kwara told our correspondent in an interview that Nigeria must
not let down its guard against the deadly virus, Ebola and Lassa fever.
He noted that the government and
people have relaxed measures that were initiated to contain the spread of Ebola
at its outbreak in 2013.
According to him, surveillance of travelers
entering the country has stopped just as people had relaxed with personal
hygiene like regular washing of hands and use of sanitisers.
“People have stopped using hand
sanitisers and frequent hand washing as before.
“We need to step up with preventive
measures and this means people must keep up with hygiene at all times,” he said
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