Cholera
It is important for people infected with Cholera to access treatment immediately with any delay to avoid infecting other people who have not5 contracted the disease.
Cholera Transmission
Prevalence of Cholera in a particular area occurs through various ways such as contaminated foodstuffs, poor personal individual, contaminated sources of water, and poor sanitation or excreta disposal. Cholera does not pose a threat to developed nations, but in developing countries, it poses a big threat due to challenges of poor sanitation and consumption of untreated water. In developing countries, people cannot be assured of adequate sanitation and access to treated water. The cholera bacterium is a type of bacteria that varies depending on time and space since its transmission is associated with a natural and social environment. The survival of the bacteria depends on the natural environment, which determines if the bacteria will survive in a certain environment such as the built environment or aquatic environment. The transmission of vibrio cholerae occurs via the faecal-oral pathway. For instance, people contract cholera bacterium when they take a sip of contaminated water or eat a piece of contaminated foodstuff.
The Vibrio cholerae secrets a certain toxin that affects small intestine’s receptors and contributes to pathology characteristics of the illness. The signs and symptoms of Cholera are dehydration, vomiting, severe watery diarrhoea, and when it is untreated, it leads to death. The bacteria interact with copepod as the key strategy to survive in the aquatic environment prior to infecting an individual host. Vibrio cholerae gain its strength via different mechanisms such as biofilms’ formation on the surface of copepod. These biofilms act as a protective mechanism for the survival of cholera bacterium in any unfavourable environmental conditions. Cholera bacterium aggregation on the copepod surface provides a suitable platform for the transmission of the bacteria to human hosts. Copepods are present in drinking water due to inadequate water treatment and poor sanitation, and this increases the risk of bacterial infections in people. The disease starts with the ingestion of food or drinks contaminated with the bacteria. The Vibrio cholerae multiplies very rapidly once it reaches small intestines via the stomach. Then the penetration of the bacteria’s toxins occurs in the cell walls of the intestines. After the penetration, the toxins hinder water absorption in the small intestines, and this leads to severe diarrhoea and dehydration.
Control Measures
Control measures that should be implemented to prevent cholera infection focus on providing people with proper sanitation and access to safe treated water. One of the successive preventive measure for Cholera is hygiene education. It is important to educate all people on the need to access cholera treatment immediately without delay to avoid infecting other people in a particular area who have not contracted the disease. In many developed nations, cases of cholera outbreak are very minimal since they have installed proper water treatment and sanitation infrastructure. One of the key symptoms of Cholera is severe diarrhoea and watery dehydration which should be treated through rehydration process. The treatment approach used in developing countries to treat Cholera includes intravenous hydration for severe illness or oral rehydration for mild conditions. To prevent secondary infections, health providers need to administer antibiotics to people infected with Cholera and their neighbours and family members.
It is essential to exclude every individual infected with Cholera from work, school, preschool, and childcare until there is not any signs and symptoms of vomiting or diarrhoea for not less than twenty-four hours. For example, any person working in the food industry should be excluded for not less than forty-eight hours without any sign or symptoms of vomiting or diarrhoea. Another control measure that should be followed is the exclusion of every Cholera infected person from swimming until the individual does not experience diarrhoea or vomit for not less than twenty-four hours. In addition, all cholera patients that are severely ill should be isolated in the health organization.
People are also required to adhere to other control measures to avoid contracting cholera bacterium. Some of the control measures include frequently washing hands with soap and water prior eating or after using the toilet, using disinfected or boiled water to brush teeth and to drink, avoid adding contaminated ice to any drink, avoid eating food offered at street vendor stores, only eat well-cooked hot food, avoid eating raw seafood, and always eat vegetables and fruits that can be peeled such as avocados and oranges.
Recommendations
Social mobilization and hygiene promotion initiatives should be executed to overcome the problem of cholera infection. The initiatives should focus on educating people on how to observe personal hygiene and embracing proper hygiene practices like safe disposal of children’s stool, cooking food safely, appropriate food storage, and proper handwashing with soap and clean running water. In case of a funeral of a person who has died due to Cholera, any funeral rituals should be avoided to prevent people from attending the funeral from contracting the disease. People should conduct awareness campaigns to inform people more about cholera outbreaks and educate them on appropriate control measure to follow to prevent the spread of the pandemic. The community forums and campaigns should aim at creating more awareness on potential risks of vibrio cholerae, how to identify cholera signs and symptoms, and how to seek immediate treatment in case of infection without infecting other people. In addition, the awareness program should inform people about the location of the health provider offering quality cholera treatment.
In conclusion, people contract cholera bacterium through ingestion of contaminated water supplies and foodstuffs. Cholera is prevalent mostly in areas where people are forced to stay in a crowded environment as a result of natural disaster, war, and poverty. These areas are characterized by poor sanitation, inadequate water treatment, and poor personal hygiene. The sources of Cholera include contaminated water supplies, wells and surface waters, seafood, grains, and raw and unpeeled vegetables and fruits. Factors that increase the risk of contracting Cholera include undercooked or raw seafood, type O blood group, household exposure, nonexistent or reduced stomach acid, and poor sanitary environment. Cholera is transmitted to the human body via the faecal-oral route. Human beings contract the disease when they eat contaminated foodstuffs or drink contaminated water. People are required to comply with various control measures to avoid contracting Cholera. Some of the control measures are washing hands with soap and water before eating food or after using washrooms, using safe, clean water to brush teeth and to drink, avoid adding contaminated ice to any drink, avoid eating food offered at street vendor stores, only eat well-cooked food, avoid eating raw or undercooked seafood, and always eat vegetables and fruits that can be peeled such as avocados and oranges.