UKHSA records first Lassa fever death in Bedfordshire, England
Photo: Toby Melville / Reuters
The British Public Health Agency (UKHSA) has recorded the first death from Lassa fever, first detected in West African countries in the late 1960s. It is reported by RIA Novosti.
According to the UKHSA, the death was recorded in the county of Bedfordshire in the east of England. In total, three cases of fever have been identified in the country. However, the agency noted that the risk to the general public remains very low.
Lassa fever is an acute infectious disease from the group of viral hemorrhagic fevers. There is currently no vaccine for it. You can most often become infected through food, drink or objects stained with feces, blood or saliva of rats. The virus can also be spread from person to person through airborne droplets or through contact with bodily fluids. The incubation period for fever is up to three weeks.
Most people who become ill show only minor symptoms, such as fever, headache, and general weakness. They may not exist at all. In its early stages, Lassa fever is difficult to distinguish from, for example, malaria or dengue fever. In severe cases, it can cause massive bleeding and resemble the disease caused by the Ebola virus. The only way to confirm the diagnosis is with a blood or body tissue test.
