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An Eastern Iowa resident who recently traveled to West Africa died after contracting Lassa fever, state officials said Monday. The virus, which is in the same category of viral hemorrhagic fever as Ebola, is rarely seen in the United States.

Iowa Department of Health and Human Services announced The death occurred on Monday but did not reveal the person’s name and few details about them. Preliminary tests have returned a possible positive for the virus, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working to confirm the diagnosis.

The person was middle-aged and had traveled to West Africa, where he is believed to have contracted the virus, the ministry said.

Iowa State Medical Director Dr. According to Robert Kruse, the current risk of transmission in the United States is “incredibly low.”

Approximately 100,000 to 300,000 people contract Lassa fever each year. West AfricaPlaces where the disease is endemic, according to the Center for Infectious Diseases Research and Policy University of Minnesota. There are only eight known cases in the United States since 1969, and they are all travel-related.

It’s even rarer for someone to die from Lassa fever. According to the report, the overall mortality rate of the disease is only 1 percent. World Health Organization.

In severe cases, the patient may experience bleeding; difficulty breathing; chest, back and abdominal pain; and vomiting.

A person with milder symptoms may have a mild fever, feel tired, or experience a headache. Most people infected with Lassa virus have no symptoms.

Lassa fever can spread between people but not through casual contact. Typically, the virus spreads only when someone comes into contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person.

Lassa fever is most commonly spread through multi-mammal rats in West Africa. People can become ill after touching objects contaminated with mouse feces or urine or after eating contaminated food. Some people also get sick after eating mice. HKM.

Prompt treatment is considered important for Lassa fever. Ribavirin, a broad-spectrum antiviral that works well against RNA viruses and is also used to treat hepatitis C, is the primary treatment.

Kruse said his department is investigating and monitoring the situation with the CDC and local public health partners. Agencies are trying to determine who had close contact with the patient, who is being treated in isolation at the University of Iowa Health Services Medical Center.

The CDC says the patient did not become ill while traveling, so the risk to other airline passengers is extremely low.