CHOLERA – SOUTH AFRICA (06): FATAL
A ProMED-mail post
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International Society for Infectious Diseases
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Date: Tue 27 Jun 2023
Source: UN OCHA, ReliefWeb, Government of South Africa report
[edited]
https://reliefweb.int/report/south-africa/cholera-death-toll-sa-rises-43
The Department of Health confirmed on Sunday [25 Jun 2023] that the
number of cholera-related deaths has now risen to 43 since the
outbreak. According to the department, South Africa has recorded 1045
suspected cases of cholera in 15 out of 52 districts across 5
provinces, 197 of which were laboratory-confirmed. Gauteng remains the
hardest-hit province at 89%, with 176 cases reported in 3 districts.
The province is followed by the Free State, which accounts for 6%,
with 11 cases reported in Fezile Dabi District, while the North West
has logged 5 infections. Limpopo has logged 4 cases, and one has been
reported in Mpumalanga.
The department explained that a confirmed case is a
laboratory-confirmed presence of cholera bacteria called Vibrio
cholerae in any patient with diarrhoea. “A suspected case of cholera
is a person of any age with or dying from acute watery diarrhoea with
or without vomiting. “In areas where a cholera outbreak has been
declared, any person presenting with or dying from acute watery
diarrhoea meets the criteria of a suspected case,” the department
explained. The case fatality, according to the department, stands at
3.5%. Meanwhile, in terms of the age distribution of cholera cases,
the age group of 41 to 50 years accounts for 23% (46/197) of cases,
followed by 31 to 40 years at 17% (33/197), and 51 to 60 years at 12%
(23/197).
“The Department of Health is pleased with the progress made with
regards to concerted efforts of interventions put in place to curb the
transmission of cholera disease and mortality rate, which have
significantly declined in the past few weeks around the country.” The
department said the focus has been on preventing further
person-to-person transmission of the disease, which has contributed to
detecting laboratory-confirmed infections in most areas, especially
where there is no reported cholera outbreak. They are appealing to the
public to maintain strict compliance with personal hygiene, especially
during food preparation at social gatherings and funerals. The
department noted that the majority of positive cases and deaths had
causal links with funeral service attendance in the outbreak
communities.