Symptoms of Cholera

Since 1817, there have been seven global cholera pandemics. In 2003, 111,575 cholera cases from forty five countries were reported to the World Health Organization.

According to the World Health Organization, cholera is an infection that mainly occurs within the intestines. It is caused by eating or drinking food or water that has been contaminated with the cholera bacterium named Vibrio Cholerae. Its period of incubation ranges from less than one day up to five days and produces enterotoxins that cause copious, painless, watery diarrhea that can quickly lead to severe dehydration and death. The complications of cholera will only occur if treatment is not promptly given.

Source of the Infection

The bacteria of cholera are excreted in feces and come in contact with drinking water or water used for washing and cooking. Eventually, it will infect people. The bacteria can also be spread to food if people do not practice proper hygiene and do not wash their hands thoroughly after using the toilet.

Most of those who are exposed to cholera bacterium do not fall ill too quickly and might never be aware that they have been infected. The main reason for this is because cholera is initially asymptomatic. However, they also do not know that they have been shedding the cholera bacteria in their stools for seven to fourteen days. This makes them the carriers of the disease, as they can still infect other people around them. Most symptomatic or obvious cases of this particular disease cause mild to moderate bouts of diarrhea that are often hard to distinguish from the diarrhea that is caused by other health problems.

When a person is infected with the bacteria that causes cholera, which is Vibrio Cholerae, these bacteria begin to grow within the intestines. After twenty four to forty eight hours, symptoms of cholera can occur. The period between becoming infected and the start of cholera symptoms is called the cholera incubation period.

Signs and Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of cholera include severe, voluminous, loose stools. The period of incubation for cholera is normally one to five days following the infection. Diarrhea is experienced almost immediately. Diarrhea caused by cholera is often in huge volumes and comes with mucus and dead cells. The feces will have a pale milky appearance that looks like water in which rice has been washed. This term is also called as rice-watery stool.

Fatal Diarrhea

This makes cholera diarrhea so fatal since the loss of fluids is excessive. If the fluid loss is not replaced and exceeds five to ten liters, it can be life-threatening. Severe dehydration can make the skin floppy, cause muscular cramps and damage the voice box as the voice will become hoarse. There is also an effect in one's level of consciousness, which may manifest as lethargy and confusion as it progresses.

Nausea and vomiting occur in both the early and later stages of cholera. Persistent vomiting could happen for hours at a time. As a result of a rapid loss in the essential natural body salts, such as sodium, chloride and potassium, painful muscle cramps may follow. Dehydration develops within hours after the onset of cholera symptoms and is much faster than in any other diarrheal diseases.

Dehydration

Dehydration can range from mild to severe depending on how much body fluid has been lost. A ten percent loss or more of the total body weight indicates severe dehydration. Signs and symptoms of dehydration include lethargy, confusion, sunken eyeballs, extreme thirst, dry mouth, dry skin which is very slow in bouncing back to its original stance whenever pinched, little urine or no urine output at all, low blood pressure and also an irregular heartbeat, medically termed as arrhythmias.

Dealing with Shock

Shock is the most possible serious complication of untreated cholera dehydration. It happens when low blood volume causes a drop in the blood pressure and corresponds to a decreased amount of oxygen that is able to reach the tissues. If this is untreated, severe hypovolemic shock could occur. This condition can lead to death in just a matter of seconds.

For children in general, the signs and symptoms of cholera infection may be the same with the adults. But, they may also experience extreme drowsiness or even coma, fever and convulsions.

Cholera as a Threat

The threat of cholera is small in developed nations, especially those with adequate water treatment. In endemic areas, you will not be infected if you follow food safety precautions and recommendations.

If one is experiencing severe diarrhea and think you may have been exposed to cholera, do not waste time to seek treatment as soon as possible. The sooner you treat yourself, the greater the chance is of saving other innocent lives as well.