First person to die of Ebola-like Lassa fever in UK was a newborn baby, reports say

A NEWBORN baby was reportedly the first to die of Lassa fever in the UK.

The child died at the Luton and Dunstable Hospital, Bedfordshire, last week.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed on Friday that an individual with the Ebola-like disease had died in Bedfordshire.

They were one of three people infected, all of the same family, after recent travel in West Africa.

The BBC said the fatality had been an infant at Luton and Dunstable Hospital, quoting an email sent to staff by Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Hundreds of frontline workers at the hospital, as well as at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, were reportedly told to isolate after being identified as potential contacts.

The neonatal unit was also closed to new admissions, sources said, presumably to reduce spread of the virus. 

Lassa fever is transmitted to people via contact with food or objects contaminated with rodent waste.

Humans can spread the killer fever through bodily fluids.

Most people who get Lassa fever make a full recovery, but in some the illness is fatal.

One in five infections result in severe disease, where the virus affects several organs such as the liver, spleen and kidneys.

It’s likened to Ebola because symptoms can include bleeding from the nose, mouth and other parts of the body.

But most people with Lassa fever don't show symptoms.

The acute viral infection is endemic in parts of Africa, with cases identified in England linked to travel there.

The UKHSA has assured the public that the risk of further infections in the UK remains “very low”.

A statement on Friday said: "Cases of Lassa Fever are rare in the UK and it does not spread easily between people.

"We are contacting the individuals who have had close contact with the cases prior to confirmation of their infection, to provide appropriate assessment, support and advice.

"The risk to the general public remains very low."

Only 11 Lassa fever cases had been identified in the UK since 1980, including the three reported on Friday.

The cases are the first of the disease to be confirmed in the UK since 2009.

The Sun has contacted Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust for comment.