Luanda, Jan 11 (IANS): Angola's Ministry of Health (MINSA) provided a bulletin on the country's cholera outbreak, reporting 119 cases including 12 deaths, with 14 cases confirmed through laboratory testing and 12 samples remaining under analysis.
"With the confirmation of the first case on January 7, 2025, the Ministry of Health declared the cholera outbreak," the bulletin said.
MINSA has updated and activated its national cholera response plan, mobilising medical resources and supplies. Key measures include enhanced epidemiological and laboratory surveillance, community communication initiatives, and water and sanitation interventions, such as distributing calcium hypochlorite and disinfecting and supplying potable water tanks.
The ministry cited challenges in managing the outbreak, particularly poor sanitation in affected areas and the lack of potable water systems in high-risk regions.
In the past 24 hours, 24 new cholera cases were identified, with 20 concentrated in Cacuaco Municipality, the epicentre of the outbreak. Cacuaco, a suburban area in Angola's capital province of Luanda, is home to over 1.2 million people.
Of the 119 cases reported, 53 per cent are female and 47 per cent male. Eleven of the 12 deaths occurred in Cacuaco.
The bulletin defines a cholera case as "a patient with severe or extreme dehydration, or death due to acute watery diarrhea, with or without vomiting, in individuals over the age of two in areas where cholera is present." A confirmed case is "a suspected case where the cholera vibrio has been isolated in stool samples."
A timeline chart in the bulletin indicated cholera symptoms were first observed in a patient on December 31, 2024, Xinhua news agency reported.
According to World Health Organization, Cholera is an acute diarrheal infection caused by consuming food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. It is a global public health threat and indicates inequity and lack of social and economic development. Access to safe water, basic sanitation and hygiene is essential to prevent cholera and other waterborne diseases.
Most people with cholera have mild or moderate diarrhoea and can be treated with oral rehydration solution (ORS). However, the disease can progress rapidly, so starting treatment quickly is vital to save lives. Patients with severe disease need intravenous fluids, ORS and antibiotics.
Cholera has been known for many centuries. The first pandemic, or global epidemic, was recorded in the 19th century. Since then, six pandemics have killed millions of people worldwide. The current (seventh) pandemic started in south Asia in 1961 and continues to affect populations globally.