Management of Lassa Fever: A Current Update

Ammar Alli,Juan Fernando Ortiz,Taras Halan,Amrapali Patel,Stephanie P Fabara

doi:10.7759/cureus.14797

Abstract

Lassa fever (LF) is on the top-priority infections list of both the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and World Health Organization (WHO). This review explores the different treatment approaches found in the literature within the last 20 years. Even though ribavirin stands out among medication options, only one clinical trial was done to assess its efficacy in humans, which necessitated that we look in-depth about the latest updates in managing LF infection. For that matter, we used a Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) search on PubMed. Inclusion criteria included papers written in the English language and human subjects. Intravenous (IV) ribavirin is the most effective treatment for an acute infection. Post-exposure prophylaxis with oral ribavirin is recommended. There is not sufficient evidence to recommended convalescent plasma for the treatment of Lassa fever. LF continues to be left in the shade from global and scientific attention despite experts expecting a rise in current and future infections due to the Lassa fever virus (LFV).

Highlights

BackgroundLassa fever (LF) is a life-threatening hemorrhagic infection endemic to West Africa, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, and Nigeria [1]
Even though ribavirin stands out among medication options, only one clinical trial was done to assess its efficacy in humans, which necessitated that we look in-depth about the latest updates in managing LF infection
We concluded that ribavirin is effective in the treatment of Lassa fever and that it should be used at any point in the illness as well as for postexposure prophylaxis (P = 0.0002)

Summary

Introduction

Lassa fever (LF) is a life-threatening hemorrhagic infection endemic to West Africa, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, and Nigeria [1]. Lassa fever is a global health concern due to its significant mortality and morbidity rates [2]. This hemorrhagic fever's most dangerous feature is its highly contagious nature, which poses a serious risk to communities and healthcare workers alike. With the outbreak of Ebola virus disease in 2015, the world's attention to the possibility of these hemorrhagic infections transforming into global pandemics became more prominent, taken into account that they occur annually in western Africa in the form of small outbreaks [2].

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