Why in news?

• Recently one of the three persons diagnosed with Lassa fever in United Kingdom, died.
• Lassa fever is a viral haemorrhagic fever that is primarily transmitted to humans via contact with food or household items contaminated with urine or faeces from Mastomys rats.
• Lassa fever is zoonotic disease caused by Lassa virus.
• It was first discovered in 1969 in Nigeria.
• It is endemic in parts of West Africa including Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Nigeria.
• Symptoms include bleeding, difficulty in breathing, vomiting, facial swelling, pain in the chest, etc.
• It spreads through infected rats, rarely spread via direct contact with a sick person’s body fluids.
• Ribavirin an antiviral drug that is used for its treatment and maintaining hydration, oxygen levels etc.