Infectious disease doctor Elena Meskina listed the main symptoms of cholera.
In conversation with “Evening Moscow” on Sunday, February 26, a specialist attributed severe diarrhea, headaches, convulsions, increased weakness, vomiting, cyanosis and severe dehydration to the main symptoms of cholera infection.
According to Meskina, cholera is an acute anthroponotic infection, which is characterized by high contagiousness. It can be transmitted by household contact – through drinking water, food, dirty water.
The danger of cholera is that it can cause severe diarrhea, causing the body to lose fluid and vital substances. RIAMO.
The doctor urged for prevention to wash hands thoroughly before eating and to carry out wet and disinfecting cleaning of the apartment. For those who plan to visit exotic countries, the doctor advised to start preparing for the trip by studying the epidemiological situation in the region.
Meskina also called for limiting the consumption of food in unverified places, especially in other countries where people are more likely to contract cholera and other intestinal infections.
According to the infectious disease specialist, it is possible to reduce the incidence of cholera with the help of disunity of the population and quarantine. Social distancing is being enforced and personal protective equipment is being used. According to Meskina, there is a vaccine against cholera in Russia, but they are vaccinated only if there are epidemiological indicators.
On February 25, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Gennady Onishchenko spoke about whether it is worth waiting for an outbreak of cholera in Russia. According to him, the last time it was recorded in Russia in 1994, but it could happen again, so you should seriously prepare for this. According to Onishchenko, the peak incidence of cholera is in July, August and September, because at this time people eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. He noted that it is necessary to plan to which medical institutions cholera carriers will be delivered, and to train primary care doctors – infectious disease specialists and therapists, as well as to create the necessary stock of antibiotics, writes life.ru.
On February 24, Philippe Barbosa, head of the WHO team on cholera and epidemic diarrheal diseases, said more than 1 billion people in 43 countries are at risk of getting cholera, notes “Federal News Agency”. New cases of cholera were reported in three countries last week, he said. NSN. To date, 22 states are fighting a dangerous disease.
In 2022, as Barbosa noted, 50% more countries faced outbreaks of infection than in 2021. Among the reasons, the WHO representative named poverty, natural disasters, armed conflicts and climate change.
Barbosa also drew attention to the fact that over the past 10 years, mortality rates from cholera have also increased. Thus, the global fatality rate in 2021 was almost 2%, which is much higher than the permissible one. According to the forecast, the same indicators are expected in 2022 and 2023, the site notes. kp.ru.
On February 20, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) reported the risk of cholera outbreaks in disaster-stricken Turkey and Syria. The likelihood of outbreaks of cholera in the northwestern regions of Syria is especially high.
