Lassa+Fever

In 1991, a civil war broke out in the sub-saharan, west African region of Sierra Leone.

The war, which ripped apart the country's population, infrastructure, and governing body, developed when an alliance between the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) and National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) attempted to overthrow Joseph Momoh's governing rule. Lasting from 1991 to 2002, the war left over 50,000 dead from fighting alone; however, the war brought much more than warfare to the region. The destructive fighting brought several outbreaks of various diseases to the region, including Lassa Fever.

Lassa Fever is an animal-borne virus endemic to various countries of West Africa. While the first case was reported in 1969 in Nigeria, outbreaks of the disease have since been reported in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

Since the disease's host is a species of rodent known as the multimammate rat of the Mastomys genus, a rat native to many regions of West Africa, the disease is believed to be endemic in many other areas which have not formally reported cases.

Epidemiological Facts:

 * 100,000-300,000 estimated infections per year in West Africa, with 5,000 annual deaths (estimates are crude due to the lack of surveillance of the disease in the region).
 * 15-20% mortality rate of victims hospitalized, while only a 1% mortality rate of non-hospitalized cases.
 * In Liberia and Sierra Leone, 10-16% of people admitted to hospitals are diagnosed with Lassa Fever, indicating a serious impact of this disease on the populations of these countries.

Humans mainly contract the virus via contact with excretions from the rodent (feces and urine), as the rats generally live near human populations and scavenge their food sources, directly digesting the rat as food, and person-to-person contact through blood and other bodily fluids.

In 80% of cases, infected individuals experience mild or no apparent symptoms. The other 20% of infected individuals experience severe multisystem disease.

Structure - Lassa Fever Transmission- Lassa Fever Symptoms and Disease Progression- Lassa Fever Contributing Factors- Lassa Fever Pathogenesis- Lassa Fever Treatment and Response- Lassa Fever Citations- Lassa Fever