Is Cholera A Deadly Disease?

What is Cholera and its causes?

Cholera is a disease that involves severe painless, watery diarrhea caused by Vibrio cholerae bacteria which can transmitted via contaminated water (tainted water) and food (especially contaminated raw food). It usually occurs in low socioeconomic countries or outbreak after disaster such as after war, after natural disaster (flood, tsunami, famine, etc) or untreated sewage disposal contamination. Cholera can be endemic or pandemic or both. Cholera causes a severe dehydration or great loss of body fluid either from diarrhea or vomiting or both that may cause the patient collapse and even death within a few hours if attention or treatment is being ignored.

WHO has identified V. cholerae O1 bacteria is the main contributor to cholera disease. Gram-negative bacillus V. Cholerae multiplies in small intestine and produces A and B subunits of enterotoxin. Subunit A activates intracellular adenyl cyclase causing a great loss of water and electrolytes into gut lumen meanwhile subunit B binds to enterocytes. This boosts the fluid flow from blood into large then to small intestines. Cholera bacteria can be killed with chlorine and in our human acid saliva as well as in our stomach.

Signs & Symptoms

The major symptoms of Cholera are diarrhea (patient having more than 10 stools within 24 hours) and continuous vomiting. Other symptoms may occur as follow:

• Dysentery - collection of intestinal diseases which characterized by inflammation of bowel wall and caused by various viral or parasites or bacterial infections in the intestines


• Fever and muscle ache


• Low immune system


• Irritability of mind


• Lassitude


• Sleeplessness


• Slow pulse at the wrist


• Paleness of face


• Stomach pressure


• Cramp of the calves

Prevention

Best way to prevent Cholera is to practice good sanitation especially during food preparation like washing hands before handling the food or eating the food, drink boil water that kill most of the germs and bacteria, cook the food instead of eating raw food and adding chlorine to unsafe water sources.

Treatment

Replacement with water containing salts and sugar to replace loss fluids is the quick remedy to treat cholera disease. This remedy can be accompanied by orally taking tetracycline, a type of antibiotic to reduce diarrhea and the infectiousness which is pretty effective. However, patient is encourage not to take anti-diarrheal medicine but rather consume high carbohydrates, low fat and protein diet to rejuvenate energy in our body