Cholera
Cholera is an acute, diarrhoea type illness caused by infection of the intestine with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The infection is often mild or without symptoms, but sometimes it can be very severe.
Occurrence: Cholera occurs primarily along the Ganges River and in Bangladesh. Epidemics can spread in to other countries too.
Transmission: The transmission is through contaminated water and food.
The disease is characterised by:
- Profuse watery diarrhoea
- Vomiting
- Leg cramps.
- Rapid loss of body fluids
- Dehydration
- Shock.
- Without treatment, death can occur within hours.
Diagnosis and treatment: The bacteria can be found in human stools. Cholera can be simply and successfully treated by immediate replacement of the fluid and salts lost through diarrhoea. Patients can be treated with an oral re-hydration solution, a pre-packaged mixture of sugar and salts to be mixed with water and drunk in large amounts. This solution is used throughout the world to treat diarrhoea. Severe cases also require intravenous fluid replacement. With prompt re-hydration, less than 1% of cholera patients die.
Antibiotics shorten the course and diminish the severity of the illness, but they are not as important as re-hydration
Vaccine: - not available in the UK and not recommended for travellers. The World Health Organisation states that Cholera vaccine is no longer an official entry requirement into any foreign country.
Prevent Cholera by:
- Drink only water that you have boiled or treated with chlorine or iodine.
- Other safe beverages include tea and coffee made with boiled water and carbonated bottled beverages with no ice.
- Eat only foods that have been thoroughly cooked and are still hot
- Eat only fruit that you have peeled yourself.
- Avoid undercooked or raw fish or shellfish.
- Make sure all vegetables are cooked
- Avoid salads.
- Avoid foods and beverages from street vendors.
- Vaccine
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