Lassa Fever: 70 still in Kano isolation centre – Commissioner

The Kano State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Aminu Tsanyawa, on Tuesday said about 70 people that had contact with the victims of Lassa fever were still in isolation receiving treatment.
Tsanyawa made the disclosure while reviewing progress of the Lassa fever campaign at a media interactive session in Kano.
He disclosed that 70 people were currently receiving medical attention at a designated isolation centre provided by the state government at Yar-Gayawa in Dawakin Kudu Local Government Area of the state.
Tsanyawa said: “Out of the 390 people earlier isolated for having contact with the victims of Lassa fever, about 70 persons are currently undergoing treatment, while over 300 others have been treated and discharged.
“Three of them who were confirmed to have contacted the disease have since recovered and also discharged after receiving proper treatment.
“The state government has put in place measures to ensure that Lassa fever did not escalate since the recent outbreak of the disease in some states, including Kano.
“The measures are not only for Lassa fever, but also to ensure that no kind of epidemic outbreak is recorded in the state.”
Tsanyawa added that the state government had adopted proactive measures to provide necessary facilities, especially at the Airport, to screen those coming into the country.
He explained that the Yar-Gayawa Isolation Centre had been in existence for some time, adding that equipment have been provided in the centre to protect doctors from contracting such diseases.
According to him, medical personnel at the centre are exposed to modern diagnostic techniques and procedures to treat victims of such outbreak.
Tsanyawa noted that the state government had embarked on sensitisation to create awareness on how Lassa fever could be contacted and preventive measures to avoid its spread.