What is cholera?
Cholera is an acute diarrheal disease that affects the intestinal tract. It is caused by the bacteria called Vibrio cholerae. Symptoms include profuse watery diarrhea, vomiting and leg cramps. In severe cases, the development of watery, high volume diarrhea can lead to rapid dehydration. Without adequate replacement of lost fluids, individuals may go into shock and die of dehydration. In these severe cases, death can occur in as little as 12 hours.
Can we control cholera?
Yes, we can control cholera. Can we eradicate cholera? No.
Why should the U.S. care about cholera?
Cholera outbreaks are lasting longer and spreading faster, and the number of people around the world lacking access to clean water only intensifies the risk. Soon, it is estimated the spread of cholera could affect nations in the Western Hemisphere more severely. The United States has the opportunity to use its research and technology to help prevent cholera from spreading into its own backyard. By developing vaccines and other technologies, the United States is leading the world by creating prevention tools that can be used to fight other serious diseases around the world. Improved health worldwide leads to a healthier workforce, which leads to a stronger economy, which leads to less dependence on the United States.
How is cholera spread?
Cholera is a disease of poverty. Cholera epidemics are caused by a lack of access to safe, clean water. Typically, the world’s poorest people obtain drinking water from a river or stream. Without available pit latrines or public sewage systems, the same river is used for defecation allowing human waste to mix with the water used for drinking. While boiling water will kill the cholera bacteria, the fuel to boil water costs money and as wood-based charcoal is the main source of cooking fuel in Haiti, use of charcoal is also related to the continued deforestation of the country. Cholera can also be transmitted if a person eats food contaminated with the cholera bacterium.
How does a person contract cholera?
A person can contract cholera by drinking water contaminated with the organism that causes cholera. Symptoms typically develop between one and five days after drinking water contaminated by the human feces of persons infected with the cholera bacteria. Only about 10 percent of those who drink water contaminated by the cholera bacteria will fall ill; however, the infection can be fatal particularly among young children, the elderly, the malnourished and persons with decreased immune function.
What is the most common cholera treatment?
Cholera can be treated by immediate replacement of the fluid and salts lost through diarrhea. Patients can be treated with oral rehydration solution (ORS), a prepackaged mixture of sugar and salts to be mixed with water and drunk. ORS is a cost-effective intervention that has saved an estimated 40 million lives since it was endorsed by the World Health Organization in the 1980s.
Is there a vaccine for cholera?
There are currently two oral vaccines developed to treat cholera which can be administered in as little as two doses. An effective single dose vaccine is needed.
What is the risk for cholera in the United States?
Cholera was a serious health condition in the 1800s but has virtually been eliminated with the introduction of modern water and sewer treatment systems. However, the spread of cholera in nearby countries such as Haiti is an indicator that cholera is a health risk for some of the United States’ closest neighbors.
What federal health agencies are involved in combating cholera?
NIH, CDC and USAID each play key roles in vaccine research, training of personnel, outbreak control and prevention.
How prevalent is cholera in the world today?
The most recent cholera pandemic began in 1961, making this the longest cholera pandemic on record. As opposed to burning out after 5-20 years as all previous pandemics have done, this appears to be gaining speed. Cholera is endemic (def: the habitual presence of a disease within a given geographic area; may also refer to the usual prevalence of a given disease within such an area) in approximately 50 countries around the world.
About ASTMH
The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, founded in 1903, is a worldwide organization of scientists, clinicians, and program professionals whose mission is to promote global health through the prevention and control of infectious and other diseases that disproportionately afflict the global poor. Research, health care and education are the central activities of ASTMH members, whose work bridges basic laboratory research to international field work and clinics to country-wide programs.
Sources
--www.cdc.gov/cholera
--www.pih.org
--Ryan, Edward T (2011): The Cholera Pandemic, Still with Us After Half a Century: Time to Rethink. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 5(1): e1003.