Cholera outbreak in Haiti ‘stabilising‘
Health officials have said there are signs that the cholera outbreak in central Haiti may be stabilising.
Although the death toll moved past 250 with more than 3,000 people infected, fewer cases were reported.
Five were detected on Saturday in the capital, Port-au-Prince, but they were quickly diagnosed and isolated.
Officials say the disease is a serious threat to the 1.3 million survivors of January‘s earthquake who are living in tented camps surrounding the city.
The poor sanitary conditions, according to the BBC make them vulnerable to cholera, which is caused by bacteria transmitted through contaminated water or food.
Cholera causes diarrhoea and vomiting leading to severe dehydration, and can kill quickly if left untreated through rehydration and antibiotics.
On Sunday, the Director- General of Haiti‘s Health Department, Gabriel Thimote, said the number of people who had died in the outbreak was rising, but more slowly than during the previous 24 hours.
”We have registered a diminishing in numbers of deaths and of hospitalised people in the most critical areas,” he told reporters.
”The tendency is that it is stabilising, without being able to say that we have reached a peak,” he added.
Source:http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art2010102512374590
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