One medical worker has been confirmed dead following an outbreak of Lassa fever in Kano State, while two other persons have tested positive for the infectious disease.

The Kano Centre for Disease Control (KNCDC) disclosed that the confirmed cases include a doctor and a female patient, both of whom are currently receiving treatment in isolation.

The Director-General of the centre, Mohammed Adamu, confirmed the development while speaking with journalists on Tuesday.

According to him, the deceased was a staff member of Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders), who died after contracting Lassa fever.

“We recorded a case of Lassa fever, but we were able to bring the situation under control,” Prof. Adamu said.
He explained that the victim, a French national working with Médecins Sans Frontières, arrived in Nigeria on January 28 and developed fever symptoms about a week later.

“She went to a hospital where she was given medication, but after three days her condition deteriorated and she started bleeding. She later went to another hospital, but unfortunately passed away the same day,” he said.

The corpse was subsequently taken to the mortuary at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), where blood samples were collected for laboratory analysis.

“After conducting a series of tests, the sample tested positive for Lassa fever,” Adamu stated.

He added that contact tracing revealed that a doctor from Minjibir Local Government Area and another woman, who had interacted with the deceased, were also infected.

According to the KNCDC boss, the two infected individuals had contact with 62 persons across five local government areas. Of these, 25 were classified as high-risk contacts.

“Blood samples were taken from the 25 persons. Twenty-two tested negative, while three tested positive. One is deceased, while the two others are currently in isolation — the woman at AKTH and the male doctor at the Yargaya isolation centre,” he said.

Prof. Adamu noted that the centre has intensified public sensitisation campaigns in Minjibir and other affected areas, while the Ministry of Environment would be engaged to fumigate suspected locations.

“All identified areas will be fumigated to flush out rats, which are the major carriers of Lassa fever, to prevent further spread of the disease,” he added.