Focussed Assessment with Sonography in acute Lassa Fever (FASLa): Development of a point-of-care protocol and description of common ultrasound findings.

Background: Managing Lassa fever (LF) patients is challenging because of the complexity of this life-threatening infectious disease, the necessary isolation measures, and the limited resources in countries where it is endemic. Point-of-care ultrasonography (POCUS) is a promising low-cost imaging technique that may help in guiding the management of patients.

Methods: We conducted this observational study at the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital in Nigeria.

Factors associated with progression to death in patients with Lassa fever in Nigeria: an observational study.

Background: Lassa fever is endemic in several west African countries. Case-fatality rates ranging from 21% to 69% have been reported. The pathophysiology of the disease in humans and determinants of mortality remain poorly understood.

Acute kidney injury and mortality in pediatric Lassa fever versus question of access to dialysis.

Objectives: To assess the prevalence of acute kidney injury (AKI), and its impact on outcome in hospitalized pediatric patients with Lassa fever (LF).

Methods: We reviewed the presenting clinical and laboratory features and outcomes of 40 successive hospitalized children with PCR-confirmed LF. The diagnosis and staging of AKI was based on KDIGO criteria.

Field evaluation of a Pan-Lassa rapid diagnostic test during the 2018 Nigerian Lassa fever outbreak.

Lassa virus (LASV) is the causative agent of Lassa fever (LF), an often-fatal hemorrhagic disease. LF is endemic in Nigeria, Sierra Leone and other West African countries. Diagnosis of LASV infection is challenged by the genetic diversity of the virus, which is greatest in Nigeria.

Phylogeography of Lassa Virus in Nigeria.

Lassa virus is genetically diverse with several lineages circulating in West Africa. This study aimed at describing the sequence variability of Lassa virus across Nigeria and inferring its spatiotemporal evolution. We sequenced and isolated 77 Lassa virus strains from 16 Nigerian states.

Retrospective Cohort Study of Lassa Fever in Pregnancy, Southern Nigeria.

Lassa fever in pregnancy causes high rates of maternal and fetal death, but limited data are available to guide clinicians. We retrospectively studied 30 pregnant Lassa fever patients treated with early ribavirin therapy and a conservative obstetric approach at a teaching hospital in southern Nigeria during January 2009–March 2018. Eleven (36.

Clinical and laboratory predictors of Lassa fever outcome in a dedicated treatment facility in Nigeria: a retrospective, observational cohort study.

Background: Lassa fever is a viral haemorrhagic disease endemic to west Africa. No large-scale studies exist from Nigeria, where the Lassa virus (LASV) is most diverse. LASV diversity, coupled with host genetic and environmental factors, might cause differences in disease pathophysiology.

Rapid outbreak sequencing of Ebola virus in Sierra Leone identifies transmission chains linked to sporadic cases.

To end the largest known outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in West Africa and to prevent new transmissions, rapid epidemiological tracing of cases and contacts was required. The ability to quickly identify unknown sources and chains of transmission is key to ending the EVD epidemic and of even greater importance in the context of recent reports of Ebola virus (EBOV) persistence in survivors. Phylogenetic analysis of complete EBOV genomes can provide important information on the source of any new infection.