NCDC: Lassa fever deaths rise to 219 as cases hit 891 in 23 states

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) says Lassa fever has claimed 219 lives across the country in the first 25 epidemiological weeks of 2026, with 891 confirmed cases recorded in 23 states and 111 Local Government Areas.

According to the NCDC’s Lassa Fever Situation Report for Epidemiological Week 25 (June 15–21, 2026), the disease has a case fatality rate of 24.6 per cent, higher than the 18.6 per cent recorded during the same period in 2025.

The report showed that 22 new confirmed cases and three deaths were recorded during the reporting week from 150 suspected cases across four states and 10 LGAs.

The NCDC noted that the number of confirmed cases increased compared with the previous epidemiological week, with new infections reported in Bauchi, Ondo, Taraba and Benue states.

It said five states—Ondo, Bauchi, Taraba, Edo and Benue—accounted for 85 per cent of all confirmed cases reported this year. Ondo recorded the highest burden with 29 per cent of confirmed cases, followed by Bauchi with 25 per cent, Taraba with 15 per cent, Edo with 10 per cent and Benue with six per cent.

According to the agency, the most affected age group is 21 to 30 years, with confirmed cases ranging from one to 93 years and a median age of 30 years. It added that the male-to-female ratio among confirmed cases is 1:0.9.

The NCDC also reported that no healthcare worker was infected during the reporting week, while the national multi-partner, multi-sectoral Incident Management System remains activated to coordinate response efforts nationwide.

It said response activities included training frontline healthcare workers, strengthening infection prevention and control programmes, active case searches and contact tracing, deployment of rapid response teams to high-burden states, distribution of personal protective equipment, community sensitisation and treatment of confirmed cases at designated centres.

The agency identified late presentation of cases, poor health-seeking behaviour driven by the high cost of treatment, poor environmental sanitation, low public awareness in high-burden communities and infections among healthcare workers as major challenges affecting outbreak control.

It urged state governments to intensify year-round community engagement on Lassa fever prevention, advised healthcare workers to maintain a high index of suspicion and adhere strictly to infection prevention and control measures, and called on partners to strengthen states’ capacity to prevent, detect and respond promptly to outbreaks.