Health officials in Ghana have confirmed cases of Lassa Fever at one of its major health facility called the Tema General Hospital, not far from the capital city, Accra.
One person has been reported dead from the outbreak as health authorities hold emergency meeting over the issue.
Starr FM in Accra reported that officials at the hospital where the outbreak has been confirmed have now quarantined some staff who came in contact with the victim in order to prevent the spread of the deadly disease.
Since January this year over 40 people have died from Lassa fever in Nigeria in the latest outbreak in Africa’s most populous nation.
Officials in Ghana have confirmed Lassa Fever cases with one death. A statement has been issued by the Ghana Health Service to that effect. Guidelines have been given to help the public avoid contracting the disease. #Ghana #Lassafever #WHO #GHS pic.twitter.com/D1kWh8PgeQ
— Isaac Kaledzi (@IsaacKaledzi) March 1, 2018
Cases were reported in 13 of 36 states while 10 health care workers were also affected.
Lassa fever belongs to the same family as Marburg and Ebola, deadly viruses that lead to infections with fever, vomiting and in worst-case scenarios, haemorrhagic bleeding.
Lassa fever got its name comes from the town of Lassa in northern Nigeria where it was first identified in 1969.
More than one hundred people were killed in 2016 in one of the nation’s worst outbreaks of the disease, affecting 14 of the 36 states, including Lagos and the capital Abuja.
The virus is spread through contact with food or household items contaminated with rats’ urine or faeces or after coming into direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person.
The disease can be prevented through enhanced personal hygiene, avoidance of all contact with rats and keeping the house and surrounding clean.
Source: Africafeeds.com
