Conference Abstract | Volume 8, Abstract ELIC2025359 (Oral 093) | Published: 13 Aug 2025
Emmanuel Dwalu1,&, Bode Ireti Shobayo1, Ralph Weah Jetoh1, Peter Adebayo Adewuyi2, Julius Saye Meator Gilayeneh1, Dougbeh Chris Nyan1
1National Public Health Institute of Liberia, Monrovia, Liberia, 2African Field Epidemiology Network, Liberia Office, Monrovia, Liberia
&Corresponding author: Emmanuel Dwalu, National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), Monrovia, Liberia, Email: dwaluemmanuelf@gmail.com
Received: 26 May 2025, Accepted: 09 Jul 2025, Published: 13 Aug 2025
Domain: Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Keywords: Liberia, Lassa fever, risk factor, mortality, outbreak, ribavirin
©Emmanuel Dwalu et al. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health (ISSN: 2664-2824). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cite this article: Emmanuel Dwalu et al., Risk factors for mortality among confirmed Lassa fever cases during the 2022-2024 outbreak in Liberia: A retrospective cohort study. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health. 2025;8(ConfProc5):00093. https://doi.org/10.37432/JIEPH-CONFPRO5-00093
A retrospective cohort study was conducted of confirmed LF cases from 2022 to 2024 in Liberia. We summarized the characteristics of cases (epidemiological, clinical and exposure) and outcome (alive/dead). Both bivariate and multivariate analysis were conducted to determine the risk factors for mortality at significance level of 95% confidence interval and p values <0.05.
Of the 179 confirmed LF cases, the median age was 21 (interquartile range {IQR}11-33) years, with 70% (125) under 30 years old. Females constituted 58% (103) and 37% (66) were students. Bong and Grand Bassa Counties accounted for the highest cases, 42% (75) and 31% (55) respectively. Rodent contact (53%, 95) was the most prevalent exposure mode. Fever (86%,154), headache (70%, 125), malaise (68%, 122), and myalgia (66%, 118) were the common clinical manifestations. Ribavirin treatments were administered to 87% (156) of the cases. The case fatality rate was 30% (53). Age 30 years or older (aRR = 2.5, 96% CI: 1.152- 5.841, p = 0.021) and those not treated with ribavirin (aRR = 3.5, 96% CI: 1.289- 9.508, p = 0.014) were independent significant risk factors of mortality, while those residing in Nimba (aRR = 0.2, 96% CI: 0.095- 0.633, p = 0.003) were less likely to die when infected.
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