Doctor dies of disease in Rivers

Dimeji Akinloye 17:38 - 14 January 2016

Lassa Fever Patient escapes from hospital in Ebonyi state (not pictured)

Njamala's death makes it three people who have been killed by the disease in the state since it broke out n December 2015.

A Rivers State medical doctor, Ehivai Njamala, has died from the viral disease, Lassa fever.

The medical practitioner, who was said to be a resident at the Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital (BMSH), in Port Harcourt died today, January 14.

According to a statement by the state's Chairman of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Dr. Duro Green, late doctor was infected by a patient whom he was treating at the hospital.

Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic illness caused by Lassa virus, a member of the arenavirus family of viruses. It is transmitted to humans from contacts with food or household items contaminated with rat excreta.

Its spread can be stopped by keeping a rat-free environment and maintaining proper hygiene.