 FREETOWN (AFP) — Medical and aid officials in Sierra Leone are preparing for
an anticipated outbreak of Lassa fever, a disease that claims about 200 lives
every year, Health Minister Soccoh Kabia said Thursday.
The viral infection "is endemic over this period in the eastern district of
the country", including the third largest city, Kenema, and the outlying towns
of Tongo Field and Panguma in the diamond mining belt, Kabia said.
"We are studying the current situation and compiling reports on a possible
outbreak as between January and February, the disease is at its peak with the
preparation of farming activities," the minister told AFP in an interview.
He explained that when farmers were clearing and burning the brush, "the bush
rats who carry the virus take cover in residential homes," then "people come in
contact with the virus through excreta and urine of the bush rats and in some
cases, people feed on these rats and are then exposed to the complications."
Preventive measures taken include the establishment of a remedial centre in
Kenema, with aid from the UN World Health Organisation (WHO), the UN Children's
Fund (UNICEF) and World Food Programme and a British non-governmental
organisation, Merlin.
"It is a disease to take seriously because of its high rate of mortality,"
Kabia warned. "If it is not acted on, 90 percent of unborn babies as well as
suckling and pregnant women will be at risk."
District Medical Officer Yankuba Bah said "people affected by Lassa fever
don't go for treatment in hospitals but prefer risky cure from fake medical
workers at cheaper costs."
The disease, which causes fever, headache, difficulty in swallowing and can
lead to infection of vital organs and death, is named for a village in Nigeria
where it was identified.
An opposition member of parliament from Kenema, Francis Konuwa, said the
district "is a Lassa fever belt. Poor water facilities as well as the
unavailability of trained and qualified health officers have worsened the
situation. We drink water from the same source where rats also drink."
According to WHO statistics, life expectancy in the west African state is
estimated at 38 years as the country is among those with the lowest life
expectancy at birth.
Before Sierra Leone was ravaged by a brutal 1991-2001 civil war, the average
lifespan of Sierra Leoneans was about 45 years. The enormity of public health
problems is largely considered accountable for such a short life expenctancy,
the WHO assessment said.
AFP:
Lassa fever kills 200 in Sierra Leone each year: minister
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