30 SEPTEMBER 2022
Voice of America (Washington, DC)
By Lisa Schlein
Geneva — Cholera is surging around the globe, the World Health Organization warns.
Flareups of the deadly disease have been reported in 26 countries in the first nine months of this year. In comparison, fewer than 20 countries reported cholera outbreaks per year between 2017 and 2021. In addition to greater frequency, the WHO reports the outbreaks themselves are larger and more deadly.
While poverty and conflict are major triggers of cholera, climate change is a growing threat.
Philippe Barboza, WHO team lead for Cholera and Epidemic Diarrheal Diseases, said climate change presents an additional layer of complexity and creates the conditions for cholera outbreaks to explode.
"This is what we have seen in southern Africa with the succession of cyclones that affected the eastern part of the African Coast," Barboza said. "The drought in East Africa is driving population movements, reducing access to water, which is already needed. So, of course, it is a key factor, which is fueling the outbreak. And the same in Sahel and other places."
Fifteen of the 26 cholera-infected countries are in Africa, according to the WHO.
Barboza said massive climate-induced floods in Southeast Asia also have resulted in large outbreaks of cholera in Pakistan and Bangladesh. Many countries that have made significant progress in controlling cholera are now back to square one, he added.
Cholera is an acute diarrheal disease caused by contaminated food or water. It can kill within hours if left untreated. Cholera outbreaks can be prevented by ensuring access to clean water, basic sanitation, and hygiene, as well as stepping up surveillance and access to health care, Barboza said.
"This is what we need countries to do, but that is easier said than done. Although many of the cholera-affected countries are actively engaged in these efforts, they are facing multiple crises, including conflict and poverty, and this is why international action is so important," he said.
Cholera is a preventable and treatable disease, Barboza said, so with the right foresight and action, the current global crisis can be reversed.
Geneva — Cholera is surging around the globe, the World Health Organization warns.
Flareups of the deadly disease have been reported in 26 countries in the first nine months of this year. In comparison, fewer than 20 countries reported cholera outbreaks per year between 2017 and 2021. In addition to greater frequency, the WHO reports the outbreaks themselves are larger and more deadly.
While poverty and conflict are major triggers of cholera, climate change is a growing threat.
Philippe Barboza, WHO team lead for Cholera and Epidemic Diarrheal Diseases, said climate change presents an additional layer of complexity and creates the conditions for cholera outbreaks to explode.
"This is what we have seen in southern Africa with the succession of cyclones that affected the eastern part of the African Coast," Barboza said. "The drought in East Africa is driving population movements, reducing access to water, which is already needed. So, of course, it is a key factor, which is fueling the outbreak. And the same in Sahel and other places."
Fifteen of the 26 cholera-infected countries are in Africa, according to the WHO.
Barboza said massive climate-induced floods in Southeast Asia also have resulted in large outbreaks of cholera in Pakistan and Bangladesh. Many countries that have made significant progress in controlling cholera are now back to square one, he added.
Cholera is an acute diarrheal disease caused by contaminated food or water. It can kill within hours if left untreated. Cholera outbreaks can be prevented by ensuring access to clean water, basic sanitation, and hygiene, as well as stepping up surveillance and access to health care, Barboza said.
"This is what we need countries to do, but that is easier said than done. Although many of the cholera-affected countries are actively engaged in these efforts, they are facing multiple crises, including conflict and poverty, and this is why international action is so important," he said.
Cholera is a preventable and treatable disease, Barboza said, so with the right foresight and action, the current global crisis can be reversed.
Cholera outbreaks surging worldwide, fatality rates rising - WHO
September 30, 2022
A lab technician works on samples to test for cholera, at a hospital
in Syria's northern city of Aleppo on September 11, 2022
[AFP via Getty Images]
September 30, 2022
Cholera cases have surged this year, especially in places of poverty and conflict, with outbreaks reported in 26 countries and fatality rates rising sharply, a World Health Organisation official said on Friday, Reuters reports.
In a typical year, fewer than 20 countries report outbreaks of the disease, which is spread by the ingestion of contaminated food or water and can cause acute diarrhoea.
"After years of declining numbers, we are seeing a very worrying upsurge of cholera outbreaks around the globe over the past year," Philippe Barboza, WHO Team Lead for Cholera, told a press briefing in Geneva.
The average fatality rate, so far this year, has almost tripled compared with the five-year average and is currently around 3 per cent in Africa, he added.
While most of those affected will have mild or no symptoms, cholera can kill within hours, if untreated.
READ: UN takes measures to fight cholera outbreak in Syria refugee camps
A cholera outbreak in Syria has already killed at least 33 people, posing a danger across the frontlines of the country's 11-year-long war and stirring fears in crowded camps for the displaced.
Barboza also expressed concern about outbreaks in the Horn of Africa and parts of Asia, including Pakistan, where some regions are flooded.
He said only a few million doses of vaccines were available for use before the end of this year, citing a shortage of manufacturers among the problems.
WHO maintains an emergency stockpile of cholera vaccines.
"So it's very clear that we do not have enough vaccine to respond to both acute outbreaks and even less to be able to implement preventive vaccination campaigns that could be a way to reduce the risk for many countries," he said.
There was no overall estimate of the number of cholera cases across the world because of differences in countries' surveillance systems, he said.
September 30, 2022
Cholera cases have surged this year, especially in places of poverty and conflict, with outbreaks reported in 26 countries and fatality rates rising sharply, a World Health Organisation official said on Friday, Reuters reports.
In a typical year, fewer than 20 countries report outbreaks of the disease, which is spread by the ingestion of contaminated food or water and can cause acute diarrhoea.
"After years of declining numbers, we are seeing a very worrying upsurge of cholera outbreaks around the globe over the past year," Philippe Barboza, WHO Team Lead for Cholera, told a press briefing in Geneva.
The average fatality rate, so far this year, has almost tripled compared with the five-year average and is currently around 3 per cent in Africa, he added.
While most of those affected will have mild or no symptoms, cholera can kill within hours, if untreated.
READ: UN takes measures to fight cholera outbreak in Syria refugee camps
A cholera outbreak in Syria has already killed at least 33 people, posing a danger across the frontlines of the country's 11-year-long war and stirring fears in crowded camps for the displaced.
Barboza also expressed concern about outbreaks in the Horn of Africa and parts of Asia, including Pakistan, where some regions are flooded.
He said only a few million doses of vaccines were available for use before the end of this year, citing a shortage of manufacturers among the problems.
WHO maintains an emergency stockpile of cholera vaccines.
"So it's very clear that we do not have enough vaccine to respond to both acute outbreaks and even less to be able to implement preventive vaccination campaigns that could be a way to reduce the risk for many countries," he said.
There was no overall estimate of the number of cholera cases across the world because of differences in countries' surveillance systems, he said.
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