The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control has reported 76 new cases of Lassa fever and 12 deaths across 10 states in Nigeria between January 20 and January 26, 2025.
This was revealed in NCDC’s week four epidemiology report released on Friday. The report showed an increase from 71 cases recorded in the third week of 2025.
According to the report, a total of 53 deaths have been recorded so far this year, with a case fatality rate (CFR) of 18.3 per cent. This is slightly lower than the CFR of 18.6 per cent recorded during the same period in 2024.
The NCDC stated, “In total for 2025, 10 states have reported at least one confirmed case across 54 Local Government Areas. About 75 per cent of all confirmed Lassa fever cases were reported from Ondo, Edo, and Bauchi states.”
The breakdown showed that Ondo recorded 37 per cent of the cases, Edo had 21 per cent, while Bauchi accounted for 17 per cent. The remaining 25 per cent of cases were spread across seven other states.
The agency confirmed that no new healthcare worker was affected during the reporting week.
In response to the outbreak, the National Lassa Fever Multi-Partner, Multi-Sectoral Incident Management System (IMS) has been activated to coordinate efforts at all levels.
NCDC also warned the public about the dangers of late presentation of cases, which often leads to a higher fatality rate. It highlighted that poor health-seeking behaviour and the high cost of treatment contribute to the worsening of cases.
The agency urged Nigerians to seek medical attention early if they notice symptoms like fever, weakness, headache, sore throat, and bleeding from body openings.
