Lassa fever: Ogun advises residents on hygiene

The Ogun State Government has alerted the  residents to the resurgence of Lassa fever in some states in the country, and warned them to be very cautious, in order to keep the disease at bay.

The resurgence of the disease has been reported in Delta, Anambra, Plateau, Gombe, Bauchi, Rivers and Ondo states.

It has claimed two lives including a medical doctor while some others were hospitalised.

The Ogun State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Babatunde Ipaye, said the state government had activated its disease surveillance and notification structures with a view to detecting any case on time. He said the state had also designed appropriate measures to prevent and control the spread of the disease.

While calling on all residents to maintain a high standard of hygiene and keep foodstuffs away from rats, Ipaye said members of the public should take note of persistent high fever that had resisted normal anti-malarial drugs. He added that anytime they noticed this, they should urgently go to the hospital.

Ipaye warned that all fluids from an infected person were extremely dangerous.

The commissioner said, “Health workers are also advised to be alert, wear personal protective kits, observe universal basic precautions, treat suspected cases in isolation and report same to the Local Government Area or the Ministry of Health immediately.

“The symptoms they should watch out for are general body  weakness, sore throat, abdominal pains, muscle pains, bleeding from any part of the body such as eye, nose, mouth, ear and other private parts of the body.”

Ipaye advised members of the public to take persons with the above symptoms to the nearest general hospital or call the Lassa Fever hot lines: 09099140121  and  09099140122.