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South African well being authorities reported immediately a case of Lassa fever identified in a person from KwaZulu-Natal on 12 May 2022.
The man had intensive journey historical past in Nigeria earlier than returning to South Africa. He fell ailing after getting into South Africa and was hospitalized in a Pietermaritzburg hospital. The analysis of Lassa fever was confirmed via laboratory testing carried out on the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, a Division of the National Health Laboratory Service. Sadly, the person succumbed to the an infection. Currently efforts are underway to hint and monitor all potential contacts. No secondary circumstances of Lassa fever have been confirmed on the time of this report.
Cases of Lassa fever in vacationers getting back from endemic international locations are reported from time-to-time. In 2007 a case of Lassa fever was identified in South Africa. The case concerned a Nigerian citizen with intensive journey historical past in rural components of Nigeria earlier than falling ailing and he obtained medical remedy in South Africa. No secondary circumstances of Lassa fever have been reported on this occasion.
Lassa fever is a viral an infection that’s endemic to the West African international locations and principally reported in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, and Nigeria. Lassa fever is much less often reported from Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Ivory Coast. Up to 300 000 circumstances of Lassa fever, with about 5000 deaths, are recorded yearly within the endemic international locations. Currently there isn’t any vaccine for Lassa fever.
The pure host of this virus in endemic international locations is a rodent species known as the multimammate rat. The rats are persistently contaminated and shed the virus of their urine and feces. Humans can come into contact with the virus via direct contact or inhalation of the virus in areas which are infested with the contaminated rats. For instance contact with contaminated supplies, ingestion of contaminated meals or inhalation of air that has been contaminated with urine droplets. Person-to-person transmission of the virus doesn’t happen readily and the virus shouldn’t be unfold via informal contact.
Person-to-person transmission shouldn’t be frequent and is usually related to the hospital-setting the place healthcare employees have contact with the contaminated blood and bodily fluids of a affected person.
In February 2022, an imported case of Lassa fever with secondary circumstances have been recognized within the United Kingdom.
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