10 facts about Lassa...

1. Lassa fever is a hemorrhagic virus that is endemic in countries of West Africa.
2. Lassa fever is spread through the Mastomys rodent; a rat that is Lassa's carrier.
3. Lassa fever is a old world arenavirus; it has been around for hundreds of years.
4. The first strains of Lassa virus appeared in cities in Nigeria: Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia.
5. Symptoms start to occur after 1 to 3 weeks, some symptoms include high fever, vomiting, back pain, and bleeding.
6. In 80% of cases symptoms do not occur, but the other 20% of the time symptoms are gruesome.
7. An anti viral drug, Ribavirin is the only medicine known to cure the virus; no set cure is yet known.
8. Lassa is known to reoccur in cities in Nigeria.
9. Cities in Nigeria contain a high population of the Mastomys rodent, therefore the disease is easily transmitted.
10. Based on facts, Lassa fever is expected to occur in the Nigerian region.