At a glance: What is Cholera?

Haiti's cholera outbreak has claimed hundreds of lives and may spill beyond the country's borders. We take a look at the facts behind the disease.

What is cholera?

Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal disease caused by ingestion of food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. It has a short incubation period of two hours to five days and can kill within hours if left untreated.

It is extremely virulent and affects adults and children.

There are an estimated 3–5 million cholera cases and 100,000–120,000 deaths due to cholera every year.

What are the symptoms?

Among people who develop symptoms, 80 per cent have mild or moderate symptoms, while around 20 per cent develop acute watery diarrhoea with severe dehydration. This can lead to death if untreated.

How it is contracted?
Cholera is a waterborne disease that is typically occurs by drinking water or eating food that is contaminated with Vibrio cholerae.

How common is it?
There are an estimated 3 to 5 million cholera cases and 100,000 to 120,000 deaths due to cholera every year. Most of the deaths are in countries without proper infrastructure and sanitation.

How is it treated?
Up to 80 per cent of cases can be successfully treated with oral rehydration salts. Very severely dehydrated patients require administration of intravenous fluids. Such patients also require appropriate antibiotics to diminish the duration of diarrhoea.

Background:

During the 19th century, cholera spread across the world from its original reservoir in the Ganges delta in India. Six subsequent pandemics killed millions of people across all continents. The current (seventh) pandemic started in South Asia in 1961, and reached Africa in 1971 and the Americas in 1991. Cholera is now endemic in many countries.