KARACHI, July 4: Cholera cases are on the rise, interviews and inquiries have revealed.
It has also been discovered that in comparison to the other months, in June and July every year cases of cholera increase several times.
Dr Altaf Ahmed of the Liaquat National Hospital told Dawn that from January to May one or two cases of cholera were being detected every month in the laboratory. “However, in the last 15 to 20 days, there has been a sudden increase in the number of samples of watery stools submitted to our lab.
“In most of the cases, the isolate identified was vibrio cholera ogawa, which as the name suggests is a strain of cholera,” he said.
Answering a question, Dr Ahmed said the samples containing cholera were coming from all over the city, particularly Lyari, PIB Colony, Sabzimandi, Ghousia Colony, Malir, Khokhrapar and Martin Quarters.
Two experts belonging to the Aga Khan University said that it was true that a noticeable jump in the number of cholera cases could be detected but the trend was not unique to 2003.
Dr Afia Zafar and Dr Rumina Hasan said in previous years too a substantial increase in cholera cases was observed during the months of June and July.
They said data collected recently showed that in 1993-94 and then in 2000-01 also the number of cholera cases had peaked during June and July.
A research paper, prepared by Dr Rumina Hasan and Dr Kausar Jabeen, discusses the re-emergence of this particular strain of cholera.
Asked to describe this year’s trend, Dr Afia Zafar said in January only three cases of cholera had been detected in the Aga Khan University’s laboratory. Similarly, only two cases each were observed in February and March.
“But then in April, seven cases were detected and in March five. In June, a total of 48 cases were observed.” In June, 2002, she said, 77 cases and in July 59 cases had been detected.
Dr Zafar said some tests had indicated that even subsoil water was not free of contamination. She added that the 29 samples, which had been tested at a government laboratory recently, had indicated the presence of E.coli in the water.
“The presence of E.coli means the presence of human faecal contamination.” This in turn indicates that sewage must be mixing with water in pipelines.
Dr Zafar said the micro-organism causing cholera keeps surviving in water throughout the year. “But the hotter months facilitate its growth and multiplication.”
Dr Rumina Hasan, Dr Altaf Ahmed and Dr Afia Zafar said the failure of the municipalities to regularly chlorinate the water to be consumed, the mixing of sewage and water in pipes due to a faulty system, and the lack of hygienic practices among the population resulted in many people getting very sick every year.
They were of the view that water should be boiled for five to 10 minutes before use. It was necessary to break the faecal-oral route of disease transmission, they opined.
The easiest way to do so was by washing hands before and after eating food, they added. The three experts were of the view that the authorities should launch efforts to rectify the situation as soon as possible.
