GN February 24, 2014 Cholera, a pandemic Cholera is a very contagious disease and is caused by the infection of the intestines by the bacterium Vibrio cholera. Worldwide, cholera has affected 3 - 5 million people and has causes 100,000 - 120,000 deaths as of 2010 (General Information." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). The cholera bacterium are usually found in water and food sources that have been contaminated by feces. A person can contract cholera by drinking or eating food contaminated by Vibrio cholerae, the cholera bacterium. Some of the symptoms for cholera are, lack of tears, excessive thirst, low urine output, nausea, abdominal cramps, sunken eyes, leg cramps, vomiting, and watery diarrhea (Board, A.D.A.M. Editorial. "Cholera."). Vomiting and watery diarrhea are the more common symptoms of cholera. These symptoms can and lead to dehydration and electrolyte imbalance. Everyone is susceptible to cholera, but certain factors can make a person more vulnerable to the Vibrio cholerae. An individual with a type O blood is more likely to develop or contract cholera. A household survey in Trujillo, Peru in 1991 determined this association between blood group O and severe cholera. “Of 463 persons in 69 households, 173 (37%) reported diarrhea, 21% required rehydration therapy, and 4% were hospitalized; these treatment requirements greatly exceeded estimates based on other populations,� (National Center for Biotechnology Information). Transmission of the cholera bacterium is closely related/linked to inadequate environmental management. Areas where basic infrastructure is unavailable, camp for refugees; places where minimum requirements of clean water and sanitation are not available or met are at a higher risk. Below are screenshots of graphs examining the changes in the number of cases reported for cholera in many countries between 1990 and 2011. Angola:
The graph above represents cholera cases over time in Angola. The size of the bubble shows the percentage of the population affected, the X-axis shows the growing total country population over time (1990-2008), and the Y-axis shows the total number of cases reported (ranging from 0-70,000). As you can see in the graph above, there are several trends related to the cholera epidemic in Angola. They include: • As the population has steadily increased, so have the number of cholera cases, at least until 2006, when a sharp decline began and the percentage of the population reached 52%. Cholera is a disease associated with poor sanitation and access to safe drinking water. 52 percent of the total population of Angola received access to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation, thus reducing the likelihood of others contracting this illness/disease. Also, the increase in aid from Western aid organizations. • In 1996, a period of gradual decline ended and cases began to multiply. Somalia:
The graph above represents cholera cases over time in Somalia. The size of the bubble shows the percentage of the population affected, the X- axis shows the growing total country population over time (1990-2011), and the Y-axis shows the total number of cases reported (ranging from 0-70,000). As you can see, the Number of cases reported for cholera rates are fluctuating, and has many trends. They include: • As the total population steadily increases, the number of cases reported for cholera is steadily increasing and decreasing. The steady decreasing is due to western aid organization that are helping to steadily decrease the number of people contracting the cholera virus. • In 2010, there is a sharp increase in the amount of cases reported for cholera, which is the result of the years of conflicts and one of the droughts in 60 years. Thousands of people have left and packed into crowed camps. Many of these camps have become breeding grounds for cholera and other diseases. Western aid organizations have been forced out because of the Islamist militant groups who control much of the country. Haiti:
According to the graph and my research, between the years of 1990-2009 cholera has been absent. In 2010, shortly after the earthquake, Haiti started to experience a cholera outbreak. The environment is an important factor in cholera outbreaks. Natural disease and man- made disasters can intensify the risk of pandemics, such as cholera. The pandemics can result in high fatality rates and explosive outbreaks. For example the after math of the Rwanda crisis in 1994, caused explosive cholera outbreaks and caused 4,800 cases within one month in the refugee camps in Goma, the Congo. This outbreak of cholera in Haiti has nearly killed 6,000 people and hospitalized 200,000. United States:
According to this graph, cholera is rare in the U.S or United States of America. Geographically, the state with the most number of cases reported for cholera is Florida. Although, most U.S travelers are not at high risk of contracting cholera, they are warned and advices to take their own supplies to help prevent the disease and treat it. Graph displaying the number of cases reported for cholera in many different regions. They also show the status of the cholera epidemic in many different regions.
Cholera is a global threat and is one the key indicators of social development. The objective of this graph is to analyze the results obtained when contrasting the reports of the World Health Organization about cholera with those of the World Bank list of sanitation (countries). I also looked at many other risk factors of cholera, such as income. Based on my researched and graphs, I determined that low-income countries, and countries where access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation are not met are more affected than countries with minimum standards of hygiene and high or middle income. In conclusion, I consider that economic development is an important factor in the morbidity and contraction of cholera as well as, environment, climate and medical management. Works Cited on graph information:
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"Cholera." WHO. World Heath Organization, n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2014. <http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs107/en/>.
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"Global Health Observatory Data Repository." Cholera: Number of Reported Cases by Country. World Heath Organization, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. <http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.175>.
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"Population (Total)." Data. World Bank, n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2014. <http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL>.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 18 Oct. 2013. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://www.cdc.gov/cholera/index.html>.
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Vibrio cholerae. (2014, February 15). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21:20, February 17, 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php? title=Vibrio_cholerae&oldid=595584568>
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"General Information." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 30 July 2013. Web. 15 Feb. 2014. <http://www.cdc.gov/cholera/general/>.
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Board, A.D.A.M. Editorial. "Cholera." Cholera. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 30 May 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001348/#adam_000303.disea se.symptoms>.
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"Improved Sanitation Facilities (% of Population with Access)." Data. World Bank, n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.STA.ACSN>.
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Swerdlow DL, Mintz ED, Rodriguez M, Tejada E, Ocampo C, Espejo L, Barrett TJ, Petzelt J, Bean NH, Seminario L. "Result Filters." National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8035040>.
- Cholera pandemic Pritchard, Hamish. "Cholera Pandemic Has a Single Global Source." BBC News. BBC, 25 Aug. 2011. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-14664450>. -
Anna E. NewtonComments to Author , Katherine E. Heiman, Ann Schmitz, Tom Tรถrรถk, Andria Apostolou, Heather Hanson, Prabhu Gounder, Susan Bohm, Katie Kurkjian, Michele Parsons, Deborah Talkington, Steven Stroika, Lawrence C. Madoff, Franny Elson, David Sweat, Venessa Cantu, Okey Akwari, Barbara E. Mahon, and Eric D. Mintz. "Cholera in United States Associated with Epidemic in Hispaniola - Volume 17, Number 11-November 2011 - Emerging Infectious Disease Journal - CDC." Cholera in United States Associated with Epidemic in Hispaniola - Volume 17, Number 11-November 2011 - Emerging Infectious Disease Journal - CDC. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/17/11/110808_article.htm>.
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Gettleman, Jeffrey. "Cholera Outbreaks Spread Across Somalia, U.N. Says." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Aug. 2011. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/13/world/africa/13somalia.html?_r=0>.