Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control has said Cholera can kill within hours if left untreated.
The NCDC made this known in a post on its official Facebook page.
The centre said reporting suspected cases of cholera early increases the chances of survival.
Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal disease caused by Vibrio cholerae; a gram-negative rod-shaped bacterium.
In Nigeria, cholera is an endemic and seasonal disease, occurring annually mostly during the rainy season and more often in areas with poor sanitation, with the first series of cholera outbreaks reported between 1970 and 1990.
Humans are the main reservoir of Vibrio cholera but water, mollusc, fish and aquatic plants are potential reservoirs.
The NCDC said “With an incubation period of at least 2 hours, cholera can kill within hours if untreated.
“It is easily transmitted in areas with poor sanitation hygiene practices and lack of clean water. Reporting suspected cases early increases the chances of survival.”
The PUNCH reports that a total of 2,523 suspected cases of cholera including 78 deaths have been reported from 31 states.
The latest data obtained from the NCDC showed that the case fatality rate of cholera stands at 3.1 percent.
The report read in part, “Of the suspected cases since the beginning of the year, age group <5 years is the most affected age group for male and female. “Of all suspected cases, 50% are males and 50% are females. “Six states – Taraba (639 cases), Cross River (591), Katsina (141 cases), kano (155cases), Ondo (117 cases), and Benue (101 cases) account for 69% of all cumulative cases. “Six LGAs across two states Cross River (3) and Taraba (3) reported more than 100caseseach this year,” the report read in part.
