The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday said the Lassa fever death toll in Nigeria has risen to 177.
The latest epidemiological report released by the NCDC stated that as of epidemiological Week 44, 2025, the Case Fatality Rate now stands at 18.3 per cent, up from 16.5 per cent recorded during the same period in 2024.
According to the World Health Organisation, Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic illness caused by the Lassa virus, a member of the arenavirus family of viruses.
WHO said humans usually become infected with the Lassa virus through exposure to food or household items contaminated with urine or faeces of infected Mastomys rats. The disease is endemic in the rodent population in parts of West Africa.