Ogun State government Thursday announced that the state had recorded its first confirmed case of the dreaded Lassa fever.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Babatunde Ipaye, who disclosed this at a press conference in Abeokuta, said two private hospitals in the state (names withheld) have also been shut down to curb the spread of the disease.
Ipaye added that no fewer than 60 primary contacts, including staff of the affected hospitals and three family members of the patient, have been identified and placed under surveillance.
The commissioner explained that the patient was first admitted at a private hospital in Ota where she spent a week and subsequently referred to another private hospital in the town.
He said it was the second hospital’s managing director that immediately contact the authorities after suspecting signs and symptoms suggestive of Lassa fever.
