Nigeria is witnessing a fall in Lassa fever cases, though the fatality rate remains worryingly high, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC).
In its latest report, the agency revealed that while the number of suspected and confirmed cases has dropped compared with the same period in 2024, the Case Fatality Rate (CFR) has risen.
So far in 2025, 145 deaths have been recorded, representing a CFR of 18.6 percent, compared with 17.6 percent last year.
The NCDC described the decline in cases as encouraging but warned that the persistently high death rate is a cause for concern among health experts.
Cases fell from 11 in epidemiological week 29 to just three in week 30, recorded in Edo and Ondo states.
Since the start of the year, Nigeria has recorded 825 confirmed infections and 155 deaths across 21 states and 105 local government areas.
The agency reported that 89 percent of all confirmed cases were concentrated in five states: Ondo (32%), Bauchi (23%), Edo (17%), Taraba (14%), and Ebonyi (3%).
🦠 Lassa Fever Situation Report — Week 30, 2025
▪️ 3 new confirmed cases in Edo & Ondo States (down from 11 last week)
▪️ 825 confirmed cases & 155 deaths reported in 21 states & 105 LGAs so far in 2025
▪️ CFR at 18.8% (higher than last year’s 17.2%)
▪️ 15 symptomatic contacts… pic.twitter.com/LzEfL1n92f— NCDC (@NCDCgov) August 11, 2025
The most affected age group remains those aged between 21 and 30 years, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:0.8.
Despite the decline in numbers, the NCDC noted persistent challenges, including late presentation to healthcare facilities, high treatment costs, poor environmental sanitation, and low public awareness in high-burden areas.
Read Also: Cross River Confirms One Lassa Fever Death
Response measures during the week included clinical management training, public risk communication campaigns, rodent control programmes, distribution of thermometers for contact monitoring, and the deployment of rapid response teams to affected states.
The NCDC urged Nigerians to practise preventive measures such as proper food storage, maintaining environmental hygiene, and seeking medical attention early to curb the spread and reduce the severity of the disease.
Lassa fever, a viral haemorrhagic illness, is primarily transmitted through contact with the urine or faeces of infected rats.
It can also spread from person to person through bodily fluids, contaminated objects, or unsterilised medical equipment.
Symptoms include fever, sore throat, headache, vomiting, muscle pain, and, in severe cases, bleeding from body openings.