Nigeria is organizing the first trial treatments for Lassa fever in 40 years
Clinical trials for the first new treatment for Lassa fever in almost 40 years will take place this year in Nigeria.
The neglected tropical disease kills approx 5,000 people per year and is endemic to West Africa.
The trials will begin in September at the Federal Medical Center, Owo (FMCO), Ondo State, which has high rates of rodent-borne viruses. It is the first work on a new treatment since ribavirin was approved for use in 1986. The efficacy of the drug is recently questioned.
Dr. Femi Ayodeji, head of infection control and research at FMCO, said: “It is important to get new treatments to prevent severe cases. Having new medications that better treat Lassa fever virus will reduce the need for supportive treatments for some patients who develop acute kidney injury and cardiovascular respiratory complications.”
Lassa fever is referred to as a epidemic threat for global health and a priority for research by the World Health Organization. Between 300,000 and 500,000 cases are registered annually in West Africa. The mortality rate is about 1%, but that increases to 15% among people hospitalized with severe cases. Symptoms include fever, coughing, vomiting and diarrhea, and it can affect the liver, spleen and kidneys.
The Nigeria Center for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has recorded 6,226 cases suspected cases and 160 deaths so far this year. More than 60% of these cases are indoors Ondo, Edo and Bauchi argue.
Dr. Manir Jega, director of health at the Nigerian Red Cross, said the figures raise serious concerns as some states are “ill-equipped to deal with an outbreak”.
The tests are carried out by the Integrate consortium from 15 leading research institutes, health centers and humanitarian organizations from 10 countries, who will test the efficacy of new and existing drugs currently used to treat other diseases.
Dr. Marie Jaspard, infectious disease specialist at Saint-Antoine Hospital in Paris, and clinical researcher for the French institute Inserm, which is involved in the studies, said: “We will evaluate several other projects (drugs) against ribavirin… The importance of This trial is so we can remove some of the treatment arms that aren’t working and add new treatments. We will not waste time and patience on medications that do not work.”
She said finding new ways to treat the virus was important as more and more deadly strains emerged in the region, most recently in Beninwhere higher death rates were recorded.
Further trials are expected in Nigeria’s Ebonyi state and in Liberia and Guinea as part of the five-year Integrate project, funded by the European Union.
Opeyemi Onupona, 36, almost died of Lassa fever last year. She was rushed to FMCO, one of the five Nigerian hospitals equipped to treat the disease. “I was afraid that my husband and two children had also contracted the disease,” Onupona said. “But fortunately for us, their test results were negative.”
FMCO, which receives funding from the NGO Alliance for International Medical Action (Alima), a member of the consortium, has an isolation ward with 40 beds and a laboratory for rapid diagnosis.
“Since 2018, we have managed over 2,000 cases, with a mortality rate of less than 15. Our emergency outbreak center is the first in the state, with case management and laboratory teams,” Ayodeji said.
Jaspard said the aim is to equip healthcare professionals with the skills and facilities to combat other viral diseases in the future.
“The very long-term goal is that we find drugs to fight different viruses such as Ebola and Covid-19. The more we find solutions against viruses, such as diagnoses, treatments and vaccines, the better prepared we will be for the next outbreak.”