Cape Town - Health authorities have called for the public to be vigilant after two confirmed cases of cholera were reported in the country this week.
The cases are sisters who travelled together from Johannesburg to Malawi to attend a funeral service.
They returned by bus on January 30, and both developed symptoms on their return to Johannesburg.
Cholera is an acute enteric infection caused by the bacteria Vibrio cholerae, and outbreaks usually occur in settings with inadequate sanitation and insufficient access to safe drinking water.
Cholera typically causes acute watery diarrhoea and can affect people of all ages.
Health Minister Dr Joe Phaahla said: “One patient presented to a local clinic and was then admitted to hospital.
During the case investigation and follow-up of close contacts, the sister reported that she also developed diarrhoea while travelling back from Malawi but it resolved within a day and she did not seek health care.
“A close contact (household family member) of one of the cases/patients was admitted to hospital on February 4 with diarrhoea and dehydration, and is considered a possible case. Laboratory test results are pending and follow-up of close contacts is ongoing.”
Cholera mainly spreads through contaminated/polluted water.
People can become infected directly through drinking contaminated water or indirectly through eating contaminated food. The infection is often mild or without symptoms, but can sometimes be severe and life-threatening.
Authorities explained that symptoms ranged from mild to severe and watery diarrhoea to dehydration.
The incubation period (the period from when the person ingests choleracontaminated water/food to when they first become ill) ranges from a few hours to five days, but was usually two to three days.
At first most people infected with cholera will experience mild illness or not feel ill.
“The department is working closely with the affected province, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) and World Health Organization to closely monitor the situation.
All people experiencing symptoms such as diarrhoea and dehydration, with or without a travel history to cholera-outbreak countries, are urged to report at their nearest health facilities for health screening and early detection,” added Phaahla.
South Africa is not endemic for cholera, and the last outbreak was in 2008/9 with about 12 000 cases.
That resulted from an outbreak in Zimbabwe which led to a surge of imported cases and subsequent local transmission in Mpumalanga and Limpopo through contaminated water.
Health officials at the ports of entry (especially land and air) will remain on alert for travellers arriving from countries experiencing a cholera outbreak, the minister added.
Meanwhile, the NICD said that 43 new laboratory-confirmed cases of measles were detected across the country by February 4.
A total of 441 measles cases were detected from October until February 1.
“The age distribution and origin of cases remain largely unchanged with the majority of measles cases in outbreak-affected provinces being among the 5-9-year age group (39%), and the highest proportion of cases arising from hospitals as opposed to primary health clinics in the under 1-year age group (54%).
“However, there is a significant number of cases in the 10–14-year age group (17%), justifying the need for a vaccination campaign to include this age group.
“Members of the public are urged to ensure their children are vaccinated against measles,” the NICD said.
Cape Times