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2 hours agoAuthor: Gaurav Tiwari
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According to the World Health Organization (WHO), outbreaks of cholera have become a cause for concern in recent years. The number of people who get infected and die from this is also continuously increasing. These figures are alarming because this disease wreaked havoc around the world in the 19th and 20th centuries. In those days, villages in India were destroyed by cholera.
This disease, which started in Bengal, India at the beginning of the 19th century, began to spread in the middle of the 20th century and took the whole world under its control. Until the year 1961, it caused a total of 6 epidemics, in which lakhs of people lost their lives. After this, the seventh pandemic started from South Asia in 1961, reached Africa in 1971 and America in 1991.
Even in the year 2024, the graph of cholera figures is increasing. This can be more of a concern for India, because cleanliness and hygiene are still a big problem here and can also become the main reason for the spread of cholera.
Monsoon is about to end, but many areas of the country are still struggling with flooding and waterlogging. In such a situation, cholera can be a major threat in cities and villages located on the banks of rivers and ponds.
so today’In the medical record‘I will talk about cholera. You will also learn that-
- Why are its latest figures frightening?
- How can we recognize the symptoms of cholera?
- What are the measures for its treatment and prevention?
What is cholera? Cholera is an infectious disease caused by bacteria called Vibrio Cholerae. This bacteria can spread through contaminated water, food or any other medium.
Most people with cholera have few or no symptoms. However, some people may experience severe diarrhea and dehydration.
All such serious cases require immediate treatment. If treatment is delayed even by a few hours, it can lead to the death of the patient. Even if someone is completely healthy, severe cholera can cause death within a few hours.
What do the WHO figures say? According to the World Health Organization, in the year 2022, about 5.5 lakh people were infected with cholera, while about 2.5 thousand people died. These figures are double compared to the year 2021.
After this, in the year 2023, infected cases increased to more than 5 lakh 30 thousand, while more than 4 thousand people died. In this regard, the World Health Organization believes that the actual figures may be much higher than the reported cases. They estimate that around 1 lakh people die every year due to cholera. The matter of concern is that the graph is increasing every year.
What are the symptoms of cholera? Generally, even though they are infected with cholera bacteria, people do not know about it. This is because most people do not experience any symptoms. According to the World Health Organization, people who show symptoms of the disease usually develop symptoms 12 hours to 5 days after being infected. During this time, other people can also be infected through these people. What are its symptoms, see in the graphic below.
Cholera can be fatal for 10% of people Because of cholera, the problem of diarrhea and vomiting starts. Because of this, there can be a lack of these important things in the body:
- electrolytes
- Fluids ie body water (the human body is made up of 60% water)
- sodium
- potassium
This can lead to serious health conditions, which can lead to death. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 10% of all infected cases of cholera may experience severe symptoms.
How is cholera diagnosed?
- There is a bacterial difference between cholera and common diarrhoea.
- There is bacteria in the body of a cholera patient, whose scientific name is Vibrio Cholerae.
- A stool test is done to detect its presence.
- The presence of V. bacteria in the stool is checked through a microscope.
- In places where cholera is most common, doctors use the ‘dipstick’ tool.
- With the help of this tool, bacteria can be detected by doing a stool test immediately.
What is the treatment for cholera? If symptoms of infection appear, immediate treatment is required. During this time, the most important thing is to prevent dehydration and compensate for the lack of water in the body due to this. Therefore, doctors adopt the following methods for this:
- First of all, an oral rehydration salt mixed with water is given. Usually doctors recommend taking ORS solution for this.
- In severe cases of dehydration, a drip can also be given for rehydration.
- Antibiotics are given to kill the bacteria causing the infection.
- Supplements are given to overcome zinc deficiency.
These treatments increase the amount of fluid in the body and compensate for the lack of electrolytes. This helps reduce the frequency of diarrhea and vomiting.
What are the ways to prevent cholera?
Prevention of any disease is better than cure. Especially in diseases where the risk of death is high, prevention is the best solution.
To prevent cholera, the most important thing is to keep washing your hands from time to time. Use soap or hand wash for this. If you are in an area where soap and water are not available, you can use an alcohol-based sanitizer. Apart from this, what else needs to be kept in mind, see the graphic below.
(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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