The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has raised alarm again over the resurgence of Lassa fever, with two confirmed cases in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
FCTA’s Secretary, Health and Environmental Services Secretariat, Dr. Adedolapo Fasawe, disclosed this to newsmen on Monday in Abuja.
She stated that already two cases were established, with no mortality recorded, after an alert of Lassa fever her secretariat received from a clinician in Bwari General Hospital.
Fasawe noted that investigations that were immediately initiated revealed the cases of children aged 14 months and 13 years old, respectively, who had contact with their mothers in Bauchi and became at high risk.
According to her, after their mother died of Lassa fever in Bauchi, their father brought them back to Abuja, where the 14-month-old tested positive and the 13-year-old tested negative.
It was also revealed that the second positive case was reported by clinicians at the Abuja University Teaching Hospital and is currently receiving care.
She further warned residents to desist from exposing their foods to the reach of rats and to also cultivate the habit of reporting strange symptoms to the nearest health centres.
“On the 15th of January, 2024, the FCT Public Health Department received an alert of Lassa fever from a clinician in Bwari General Hospital ( BGH). A rapid response team was mobilised to investigate the cases.
“Investigation revealed that they were high-risk contacts with their mother. Samples were collected and sent to the National Reference Lab for confirmation.
“The mother was a confirmed case, diagnosed at the Tafawa Balewa Teaching Hospital, Bauchi. Following her demise, the father travelled on January 9, 2024, to Bauchi to bring back the children who had accompanied their mother to Bauchi and returned to the FCT on January 12, 2024.
“The PHD investigated them and daily monitored them for symptoms. The results came back in the 14-month-old position and negative for the 13-year-old.”
. TheWitness
