Open Outbreak

Should I be worried about Lassa fever in Nigeria?

Updated · Graded from official assessments; nothing here is medical advice.

Lassa fever in Nigeria · elevated

If you are in the affected area high
WHO assessed the national risk in Nigeria as high on 1 May 2023. According to WHO
If you are elsewhere in the same country or region high
WHO assessed the national risk in Nigeria as high on 1 May 2023. According to WHO
If you are travelling there soon low
WHO assessed the risk to travellers as low on 1 May 2023. According to WHO
If you are elsewhere in the world low
WHO assessed the global risk as low on 1 May 2023. According to WHO

What is happening

Nigeria is dealing with another 2026 Lassa fever outbreak, and WHO material available here says Lassa fever is endemic in Nigeria with recurrent seasonal outbreaks. No current October 2026 WHO Disease Outbreak News item or directly retrieved Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention situation report is available here. Media reports on 13 October quoting NCDC’s week 40 report said there were 1,138 confirmed cases, 268 deaths, and 8,414 suspected cases in 2026, with confirmed cases across 24 states and 119 local government areas; those figures are unverified here. The same reports said week 40 recorded 3 new confirmed cases and 1 death, down from 13 new confirmed cases in week 39. Reported response measures include rapid response deployments in high-burden states, active case search, contact tracing, infection prevention and control work, PPE supply, training for frontline workers, and public advice on sanitation, food storage, and early care seeking.

Who is affected and how it spreads

Lassa fever is a viral illness found mainly in West Africa, including Nigeria. People usually get infected through food, dust, or household items contaminated with urine or faeces from Mastomys rats. Human-to-human spread can happen through direct contact with blood or other body fluids, but WHO says this is uncommon and is mainly a concern in health-care settings without good infection prevention. Most infections are mild or have no symptoms, but some become severe, and WHO says there is no approved vaccine.

What we are watching

Updates

Sources