Cholera – Symptoms, Treatment and Prevention

Key facts

Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal disease that can kill within hours if left untreated.

Researchers have estimated that each year there are 1.3 to 4.0 million cases of cholera, and 21 000 to 143 000 deaths worldwide due to cholera Most of those infected will have no or mild symptoms and can be successfully treated with oral rehydration solution.

Severe cases will need rapid treatment with intravenous fluids and antibiotics.

Provision of safe water and sanitation is critical to prevent and control the transmission of cholera and other waterborne diseases.

Oral cholera vaccines should be used in conjunction with improvements in water and sanitation to control cholera outbreaks and for prevention in areas known to be high risk for cholera.

A global strategy on cholera control, Ending Cholera: a global roadmap to 2030, with a target to reduce cholera deaths by 90% was launched in 2017.

Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by ingestion of food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Cholera remains a global threat to public health and an indicator of inequity and lack of social development. Researchers have estimated that every year, there are roughly 1.3 to 4.0 million cases, and 21 000 to 143 000 deaths worldwide due to cholera.

Symptoms

Cholera is an extremely virulent disease that can cause severe acute watery diarrhoea. It takes between 12 hours and 5 days for a person to show symptoms after ingesting contaminated food or water. Cholera affects both children and adults and can kill within hours if untreated.

Most people infected with V. cholerae do not develop any symptoms, although the bacteria are present in their faeces for 1-10 days after infection and are shed back into the environment, potentially infecting other people. Among people who develop symptoms, the majority have mild or moderate symptoms, while a minority develop acute watery diarrhoea with severe dehydration. This can lead to death if left untreated.

Vibrio cholerae strains

There are many serogroups of V. cholerae, but only two – O1 and O139 – cause outbreaks. V. cholerae O1 has caused all recent outbreaks. V. cholerae O139 – first identified in Bangladesh in 1992 – caused outbreaks in the past, but recently has only been identified in sporadic cases. It has never been identified outside Asia. There is no difference in the illness caused by the two serogroups.

Epidemiology, risk factors, and disease burden Cholera can be endemic or epidemic.

A cholera-endemic area is an area where confirmed cholera cases were detected during the last 3 years with evidence of local transmission (meaning the cases are not imported from elsewhere). A cholera outbreak/epidemic can occur in both endemic countries and in countries where cholera does not regularly occur.

In cholera endemic countries an outbreak can be seasonal or sporadic and represents a greater than expected number of cases. In a country where cholera does not regularly occur, an outbreak is defined by the occurrence of at least 1 confirmed case of cholera with evidence of local transmission in an area where there is not usually cholera.

Cholera transmission is closely linked to inadequate access to clean water and sanitation facilities. Typical at-risk areas include peri-urban slums, and camps for internally displaced persons or refugees, where minimum requirements of clean water and sanitation are not been met.

The consequences of a humanitarian crisis – such as disruption of water and sanitation systems, or the displacement of populations to inadequate and overcrowded camps – can increase the risk of cholera transmission, should the bacteria be present or introduced. Uninfected dead bodies have never been reported as the source of epidemics.

The number of cholera cases reported to WHO has continued to be high over the last few years. During 2019, 923 037 cases, 1911 deaths were notified from 31 countries (3). The discrepancy between these figures and the estimated burden of the disease is since many cases are not recorded due to limitations in surveillance systems and fear of impact on trade and tourism.

Prevention and control

A multifaceted approach is key to control cholera, and to reduce deaths. A combination of surveillance, water, sanitation and hygiene, social mobilisation, treatment, and oral cholera vaccines are used.

Surveillance

Cholera surveillance should be part of an integrated disease surveillance system that includes feedback at the local level and information-sharing at the global level.

Water and sanitation interventions

The long-term solution for cholera control lies in economic development and universal access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation. Actions targeting environmental conditions include the implementation of adapted long-term sustainable WASH solutions to ensure use of safe water, basic sanitation and good hygiene practices in cholera hotspots. In addition to cholera, such interventions prevent a wide range of other water-borne illnesses, as well as contributing to achieving goals related to poverty, malnutrition, and education. The WASH solutions for cholera are aligned with those of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 6).

Treatment

Cholera is an easily treatable disease. The majority of people can be treated successfully through prompt administration of oral rehydration solution (ORS). The WHO/UNICEF ORS standard sachet is dissolved in 1 litre (L) of clean water. Adult patients may require up to 6 L of ORS to treat moderate dehydration on the first day. Severely dehydrated patients are at risk of shock and require the rapid administration of intravenous fluids. These patients are also given appropriate antibiotics to diminish the duration of diarrhoea, reduce the volume of rehydration fluids needed, and shorten the amount and duration of V. cholerae excretion in their stool.

Mass administration of antibiotics is not recommended, as it has no proven effect on the spread of cholera may contribute to antimicrobial resistance. Rapid access to treatment is essential during a cholera outbreak. Oral rehydration should be available in communities, in addition to larger treatment centres that can provide intravenous fluids and 24 hour care. With early and proper treatment, the case fatality rate should remain below 1%. Zinc is an important adjunctive therapy for children under 5, which also reduces the duration of diarrhoea and may prevent future episodes of other causes of acute watery diarrhoea. Breastfeeding should also be promoted.

Ending Cholera: a Roadmap to 2030

In October 2017, GTFCC partners launched a strategy for cholera control Ending Cholera: A global roadmap to 2030. The country led strategy aims to reduce cholera deaths by 90% and to eliminate cholera in as many as 20 countries by 2030.

Source: who