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Lassa fever claimed no fewer than 75 lives and infected five healthcare workers between January and mid‑February 2026, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has revealed.
NCDC disclosed this in its Epidemiological Week 7 report, covering 9 to 15 February.
According to the NCDC, the case fatality rate rose to 23 per cent, while 82 new cases were confirmed within the period in review, bringing the total to 326 confirmed cases and four probable cases out of 1,538 suspected cases reported so far this year.
There were confirmed cases across 14 states in the country, including Ondo, Bauchi, Taraba, Edo, Plateau, Gombe, Nasarawa, Kano, Ebonyi, the Federal Capital Territory, Kogi, Kebbi, Kaduna and Benue.
NDNC also noted that 16 states across 58 local government areas have reported at least one confirmed case this year.
Bauchi accounted for the highest number of infections. About 84 per cent of confirmed cases were concentrated in Bauchi, Ondo, Taraba and Edo states. The most affected group during the period under review was young adults aged 18 to 20.
The NCDC added that suspected and confirmed cases are lower compared to the same period last year. The NCDC cited late presentation of patients and poor health‑seeking behaviour as factors contributing to the rising fatality rate.
Nigeria has recorded recurrent outbreaks of Lassa Fever, a fatal viral haemorrhagic illness caused by the Lassa virus. It is transmitted to humans primarily through contact with the urine, faeces, or saliva of infected Mastomys natalensis rats.
Healthcare workers are also affected by the outbreak. A Nigerian doctor, Salome Oboyi, recently died after contracting Lassa fever while treating a pregnant patient at Bingham University Teaching Hospital in Jos, Plateau State.
