Lassa fever deaths rise to 263 as Nigeria records 1,115 confirmed cases
Nigeria has recorded 263 Lassa fever deaths and 1,115 confirmed cases so far in 2026, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
The figures, contained in NCDC’s epidemiological Week 38 update covering September 14 to 20, show that confirmed infections have been recorded across 24 states and 119 local government areas.
The case-fatality rate — the proportion of confirmed patients who died — stood at 23.6 per cent.
That means almost one in four confirmed cases recorded in the official surveillance data has resulted in death.
The latest figures also resolve an apparent conflict in recent reports.
At the end of Week 37, NCDC had recorded 1,104 confirmed cases and 259 deaths. Week 38 added 11 confirmed cases and four deaths, taking the cumulative totals to 1,115 cases and 263 deaths.
The two sets of figures therefore represent consecutive reporting periods, not competing current tolls.
New confirmed cases fell in Week 38
NCDC said 11 new confirmed cases were recorded during Week 38, compared with 17 in the preceding week.
The Week 38 infections were reported in Ondo, Edo and Taraba states.
The decline in weekly confirmed cases means the cumulative rise should not, on its own, be interpreted as proof that transmission is accelerating.
The broader burden, however, remains substantial.
Five states — Bauchi, Ondo, Taraba, Benue and Edo — accounted for 87 per cent of all confirmed cases reported so far, according to NCDC.
The agency also said people aged between 21 and 30 remained the most affected age group.
No new healthcare-worker infection was recorded during Week 38.
Fatality rate remains high
The 23.6 per cent case-fatality rate is higher than the 18.5 per cent recorded during the corresponding period in 2025, according to the NCDC data.
That difference sharpens the public-health question beyond the number of infections.
The burden is also about whether infected patients are being detected early enough, reaching appropriate treatment quickly enough and receiving adequate clinical care before their condition deteriorates.
NCDC has repeatedly stressed early diagnosis and treatment because delays can significantly worsen outcomes.
Prevention remains a household and health-system issue
Lassa fever is transmitted mainly through exposure to food or household items contaminated by infected rodents.
Person-to-person transmission can also occur, particularly in healthcare settings where infection-prevention measures are inadequate.
NCDC has advised households to store food in covered, rodent-proof containers, dispose of waste properly, keep homes and surroundings clean and seek medical care early when symptoms develop.
Symptoms can include fever, weakness and headache, while more severe illness may involve bleeding and other complications.
The public-health challenge therefore operates on two fronts: reducing exposure in homes and communities, and ensuring that suspected cases are recognised and treated early enough.
The accountability question
The Week 38 figures show fewer new confirmed infections than in the previous week, but they also show four additional deaths and a cumulative fatality rate of 23.6 per cent.
That makes mortality — not only case detection — a central accountability issue.
The key questions for health authorities are whether high-burden states have enough diagnostic capacity, whether patients are reaching treatment centres early enough and whether infection-control measures are holding in healthcare facilities.
Those questions become more urgent where repeated outbreaks continue to produce high mortality and sustained public-health pressure.
For now, NCDC’s Week 38 position is clear:
Nigeria has recorded 1,115 confirmed Lassa fever cases in 2026.
Two hundred and sixty-three confirmed patients have died.
And while new confirmed infections fell in the latest reporting week, the proportion of confirmed cases ending in death remains high.
