Gombe State has recorded first index case of Lassa fever for the year 2024 as announced by the Commissioner of Health, Dr. Habu Dahiru.
The commissioner made the declaration in his during a news briefing saying that the patient is a 25-year-old commercial driver who allegedly travelled to Adamawa State and stayed for two weeks before returning to Gombe.
According to him: “Upon his return to Gombe, he started running temperature and was admitted to Sunnah and Ahajas Clinics, respectively.
“From Ahajas, he was referred to Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe, when they saw that he was not responding to treatment and his condition was deteriorating. It was at the Teaching Hospital that he was tested for Lassa and was confirmed positive.
“When the person was confirmed positive, he was moved to an isolated ward of the Hospital for proper treatment.”
The commissioner also said that samples of 15 people who had contact with the victim had been taken to a laboratory for test and the result was being awaited as of the time of the briefing.
He also said that the incident management team of the state Ministry of Health had been activated and that it is going around the state searching for active cases for management.
Dahiru said that Lassa cases in the state over the past five years have created concerns saying that “in 2018, Three cases were reported while in 2019 and 2020, the number rose to Six cases each whereas there were no reported cases in 2021. However, in 2023, the state faced a surge with 24 suspected cases.”
According to him, a systematic approach involving case identification, isolation, and treatment has been activated saying that, “the health system has implemented a laboratory pillar for the collection of samples from suspected cases for further investigation.”
He cautioned against improper food handling practices, such as allowing rats to contaminate stored food products or leaving utensils exposed overnight.
The commissioner stressed that collective efforts were essential to contain the outbreak and protect the health of the community.
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