LASSA Fever: A 1400% Fold Increase in Infection Rate among Health Care Workers in Nigeria-a Cause for Concern and a Comparative Analysis of NCDC 2021 and 2022 Situation Reports

Abstract

Background: Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic illness {fever} caused by Lassa virus, which is hosted by rodents in the Mastomys natalensis species. It is found in abundance in West, East, and Central Africa. Lassa fever is caused by an arenavirus, which is a single-stranded, bisegmented RNA virus that is enclosed. Lassa fever was originally documented in 1969 in the Borno State town of Lassa in Nigeria, when two missionary nurses died of the sickness. Unfortunately, despite the fact that the first case was recorded 53 years ago, hundreds of thousands of cases are reported each year without proper epidemic preparedness and prevention strategies. Objectives: The study's goal is to characterize the different percentage increases in the various Lassa fever report indicators as reported by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), with the goal of giving a comparative analysis of the Lassa fever report in 2021 and 2022 using the 7th week epidemiological report of 2021 and 2022. Methods: Data and information for this article was obtained in Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) 7th week epidemiological situation report of 2022. Results: A comparison of the Lassa fever situation report for week 7 epidemiology report for 2021 and 2022 revealed a 1400 percent rise in the infection rate in health care workers in 2022 compared to the previous year, 2021. Other report indicators (suspected/confirmed cases, state and local government involvement, etc.) increased by more than 100 percent in the 2022 report compared to the 2021 report. Conclusion: This comparative analysis has revealed the lack of an epidemic preparation strategy for such an annual epidemic, which is eye-opening for all health care workers, administrators, and governments. As a result, establishing an emergency preparation strategy and implementing several prevention strategies (deratization, health-care training, community sensitization etc) that can lead to a reduction in the number of cases and deaths each year is critical.