Difference between revisions of "Team:Lambert GA/Cholera Background"

Cholera Background

Cholera is an acute, diarrheal illness caused by infection of the intestine with the toxigenic bacterium Vibrio cholerae serogroup O1 or O139. V. cholerae O139 was first identified in Bangladesh in 1992 caused numerous outbreaks in the past, but recently has only been identified in sporadic cases located in Asia. However, the symptoms displayed by both infectious serotypes of cholera have been the same. The main form of transmission of the cholera bacterium is contamination of water and food by feces from an infected individual. Cholera is prevalent in location with feeble water treatment and sanitation infrastructure. The main form of diagnosis for cholera is stool sample or a rectal swab which must be sent to a laboratory to look for the cholera bacterium. Key symptoms of cholera include severe diarrhea which leads to dehydration, pain in the abdominal regions, and lethargy. Approximately one in ten (10%) infected persons will have dire cases of cholera characterized by profuse watery diarrhea, vomiting, and leg cramps. In these people, rapid loss of body fluid and water-electrolyte imbalance leads to dehydration and shock. In these critical cases, lack of access to treatment can lead to death in a matter of hours. The CDC reports that there are an estimated 2.9 million cholera cases worldwide.

Unfortunately, 100,000 cholera deaths occur yearly even with the existence of Oral Cholera Vaccines (OCVs), an effective tool to combat cholera in developing nations with an 80.2% effectiveness rate. Other treatments include rehydration therapy, antibiotics, and IV fluids. In the years of 2000-2016 the World Health Organization found that In 2016, major cholera epidemics, including Haiti in the Americas, DRC, Somalia and the United Republic of Tanzania in Africa, and Yemen in Asia. These same locations are places reported with poor water infrastructure and lack of access to cholera treatment centers. More critically the recent Yemen cholera outbreak has been deemed “the worst cholera outbreak in recorded history” starting in October 2016 . There has been 1,055,788 suspected cases, 612,703 confirmed cases, and 2, 255 deaths as of April 27, 2017. As Saudi-led coalition strikes are deliberately targeting water systems in Yemen and have already prevented 14.5 million Yemenis from getting access to clean water and are destroying health infrastructure such as cholera treatment centers. Ultimately, resource allocation has been difficult because cholera is rapid and sporadic hindering aid organizations from providing timely solutions.

Timeline

References

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