We Have Not Recorded Any Case Of Lassa Fever In Cross River – Commissioner

By; VITALIS UGOH, Calabar
Cross River State has been formally cleared as having recorded any case of Lassa Fever throughout the eighteen local government areas of the state.
The State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Inyang Asibong who stated this in a statement in Calabar, pointed out that the State Ministry of Health has received a formal “confirmation from the Institute of Lassa Fever Research and Control, Irua, Edo State that the Lassa Fever samples sent to the Institute have all returned negative”.
Asibong therefore urged the State Epidemiologist and Disease Surveillance Officers in the State to continue their work “with every level of alertness even though the State has been certified safe”.
She advised members of the public to go about their normal duties while ensuring that they imbibe and practice good personal and environmental hygiene to guide against having contact with possible sources of contacting Lassa Fever.
She commended Healthcare Professionals in the State for their tenacity and enjoined them to continue to be on red alert at all times in spite of the current result of the test to checkmate any emergencies.
Lassa Fever, she pointed out is an acute viral hemorrhagic illness that occurs in West Africa and it is transmitted to humans through contact with infected or contaminated food or household items by rodent secretion.