Cholera Death Toll in Malawi Soars to 214

Cholera outbreaks in Malawi tend to be seasonal and mostly occur during the rainy season. The first cholera epidemic in the African country took place in 1998, when the spread of disease began in the south of the country. Notably, the present outbreak, which broke out in March, also started in the south of the country.

The cholera death toll in Malawi has reached 214 as the county experiences the disease’s worst outbreak in a decade.

However, compared with October's peak rates, the recent numbers of daily cases have fallen: on Tuesday, 174 cases were reported, compared with more than 200 per day in late October.

Usually, the southern regions of the country, located on the lowlands and highly susceptible to flooding during the rainy seasons, are the worst affected regions. Floods both spread the disease and force people to relocate causing them subsequently to suffer from poor living conditions and bad hygiene.

The present outbreak began in March in the country’s south and has so far affected 27 of Malawi's 29 districts. Although the outbreak started in the south, northern parts of the country are now the worst affected. Notably, 79 percent of reported cases and 68 percent of deaths have occurred in only five Malawian districts. In total, more than 7,000 people have been infected so far.

According to the World Health Organization, men are more susceptible to cholera than women, and people aged 21 to 30 are the most vulnerable.

Cholera is an acute intestinal infection that can cause severe dehydration and kill a person within hours. However, it is easily treatable and most infected people do not develop any symptoms.

This disease is closely related to bad sanitation, as well as consumption of contaminated water and food. Fortunately, vaccination against cholera exists, and this week Malawi received a shipment of 2.9Mln oral cholera vaccines.