Advances in Infectious Diseases, 2023, 13, 722-734 https://www.scirp.org/journal/aid ISSN Online: 2164-2656 ISSN Print: 2164-2648 DOI: 10.4236/aid.2023.134058 Dec. 29, 2023 722 Advances in Infectious Diseases Lassa Fever: Patients Profile and Treatment Outcomes at Benue State University Teaching Hospital Makurdi, North-Central Nigeria Tsavyange Peter Mbaave 1* , Onyilo Ogbu 2 , Patrick O. Echekwube 1 , Terrumun Zaiyol Swende 3 , Igba Terhile Igbah 1 1 Department of Medicine, Benue State University and Teaching Hospital, Makurdi, Nigeria 2 Department of Paediatrics, Benue State University and Teaching Hospital, Makurdi, Nigeria 3 Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Benue State University and Teaching Hospital, Makurdi, Nigeria Abstract Lassa fever is a viral haemorrhagic fever found mostly in West Africa where it is endemic but generates periodic outbreaks in the dry seasons. The virus is spread by the rat species named mastomys natalensis. While the illness is minor in most cases, the mortality is significant in hospitalized patients. Few completely equipped treatment centers existed in Nigeria previous to cur- rent increase in frequency requiring demand for new treatment centers without the full complement of essential capabilities. Aim: To analyze the profile and treatment outcome in patients hospitalized in one of such new re- source-constrained centers at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital Makurdi, Nigeria. Methodology: This was a retrospective, descriptive hospit- al-based research encompassing January 2020 to March 2023. Medical records of those admitted to the isolation center were reviewed. The relevant data was coded and analyzed using IBM SPSS version 23. Results: One hun- dred and ten (110) individuals were hospitalized for probable or suspected Lassa fever throughout the research period. A total of 35 confirmed patients satisfied the inclusion criteria and were included as the study subjects. There were 23 (65.7%) men and 12 (34.3%) females. Their mean age was 35.36 ± 12.21 years (range 15 - 61 years). The treatment outcome showed that 24 (75%) survived and were discharged, 5 (15.6%) were referred out of the facil- ity for dialysis and 3 died, providing a mortality of 8.6%. The causes of mor- tality in study patients were acute kidney injury and encephalopathy. Con- clusion: Lassa fever is endemic in Benue state with all types of individuals af- flicted. The outcome of treatment was good despite resource difficulties. Las- sa fever can be successfully managed even in resource-challenged situations typically encountered in developing countries. How to cite this paper: Mbaave, T.P., Ogbu, O., Echekwube, P.O., Swende, T.Z. and Igbah, I.T. (2023) Lassa Fever: Patients Profile and Treatment Outcomes at Benue State University Teaching Hospital Makur- di, North-Central Nigeria. Advances in Infectious Diseases, 13, 722-734. https://doi.org/10.4236/aid.2023.134058 Received: October 3, 2023 Accepted: December 26, 2023 Published: December 29, 2023 Copyright © 2023 by author(s) and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Open Access