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Since the beginning of the year through 1 December, Liberia has reported seven outbreaks of Lassa fever with a total of 67 laboratory confirmed cases including 22 deaths (mortality ratio of 32.8%). According to the World Health Organization.
Of the 15 counties in Liberia, five have reported confirmed cases.
The worst affected counties are Bong (22 cases, 4 deaths), Grand Bassa (26 cases, 6 deaths), and Nimba (17 cases, 11 deaths). Montserrado and River Ge counties have reported one confirmed case with one death in River Ge County.
Liberia is one of the West African countries where Lassa fever is endemic, along with Benin, Ghana, Guinea, Nigeria, Mali, Sierra Leone and Togo.
Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic fever spread through contact with infected rodents, their urine or droppings. Lassa fever can also be passed from person to person through contact with an infected person’s bodily fluids.
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Symptoms of Lassa fever (fever, chills, headache, and fatigue) develop 1-3 weeks after infection. About 20% of people infected with Lassa fever develop severe illness that can lead to hemorrhagic haemorrhage, shortness of breath, vomiting, facial swelling, chest, back, and abdominal pain, and sometimes death.
