Government urged to reveal extent of Cholera threat

By Tichaona Sibanda
17 May 2006

There is growing concern about the ongoing threat of cholera that has already killed close to 50 people in the country since February this year, amid concerns government could be suppressing information on the deadly disease.

Dr Henry Madzorere, secretary for Health in the MDC led by Morgan Tsvangirai, said the first line of defence against the fast spreading disease is to warn people of the impending danger that is coming their way. This entails government releasing solid statistics about the numbers who have died or been affected and the general movement of the disease.

‘We’ve just had an explosive outburst of the disease in many parts of the country now and it would be useful for government to keep track of the disease, but as it is now we see it is spreading all over the country. A lot can be done without hiding anything on cholera,’ Madzorere said.

Authorities in the country have blamed the outbreak on the poor quality of drinking water. Cholera is an acute, diarrhoeal 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 severe. Approximately one in 15 infected persons have a severe case, which is characterized by profuse watery diarrhoea, vomiting and leg cramps. In these persons rapid loss of body fluids leads to dehydration and shock. Without treatment, death can occur within hours.

The latest deaths from cholera were in Kachuta, a rural district in northern Zimbabwe. Food is being blamed for the spread of the cholera there after a man reportedly ate a contaminated fish. Sudden large outbreaks are usually caused by a contaminated water supply.

Madzorere said when cholera occurs in an unprepared community case-fatality rates may be as high as 50%, usually because there are no facilities for treatment or because treatment is given too late. In contrast he said a well-organized response in a country with a well established diarrhoeal disease control programme can limit the case fatality rate to less than 5%.

He added that when cholera appears in a community it is essential to ensure three things: hygienic disposal of human faeces, an adequate supply of safe drinking water, and good food hygiene. Effective food hygiene measures include cooking food thoroughly and eating it while still hot, preventing cooked foods from being contaminated by contact with raw foods including water and ice, contaminated surfaces or flies; and avoiding raw fruits or vegetables unless they are first peeled. Washing hands after using the bathroom and particularly before contact with food or drinking water is equally important.