UMEM Educational Pearls

Category: International EM

Title: In the Time of Cholera

Keywords: Cholera, conflict, children (PubMed Search)

Posted: 7/5/2017 by Jon Mark Hirshon, MD, MPH, PhD (Updated: 4/19/2024)
Click here to contact Jon Mark Hirshon, MD, MPH, PhD

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

Rising cholera, diarrhea and malnutrition is a deadly combination in war torn countries, such as Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia and Sudan, especially for children.

Yemen currently has the worst outbreak globally, with over 260,000 suspected cases and over 1,600 deaths. In Yemen:

o   Half the suspected cases are children

o   A quarter of the deaths are among children

 

Bottom Line:

Cholera remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality globally, especially in areas of conflict.

References

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs107/en/

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=57114#.WV2aQ9Pyu9Y