Jos — An outbreak of Lassa fever has killed four persons, just as 11 others are affected by the disease in Jos-North, Jos-South and Bassa Local Government Areas of Plateau State. The state Epemidiologist, Dr Raymond Juryit, who confirmed this to Daily Trust, said there was an outbreak of viral hemorrhagic Lassa fever in three local government areas and that so far, the state Ministry of Health has recorded 15 cases.

He decried challenges being faced in controlling the disease, saying, "Ribavirin is the only drug for the treatment of Lassa fever, but we don't have it right now. We usually receive them from Federal Ministry of Health every year, but we have not received any for this year yet. Doctors now resort to symptomatic treatment rather than curative treatment". He urged residents of the affected areas to maintain high personal hygiene and environmental sanitation, saying Lassa fever spreads rapidly in dirty environments. When contacted, the state Commissioner for Health, Dr Fom Dakwak, confirmed the outbreak, adding that some affected persons are at Bingham Teaching Hospital in Jos, and in dire need of the drugs.

He said: "It is true that there are no drugs in the state at the moment. We receive them from the Federal Ministry of Health and the state ministry has made several efforts to get the drugs to the patients. For the past three months, we have been trying to get the drugs from the ministry, but we have not been able to get them. Also, we cannot get the drugs in the market; they are produced by manufacturers based on orders by the Federal Ministry of Health. However, we are considering an alternative in order to arrest the situation".