Monday, September 03, 2007
Sulaimaniya water treatement plant source of cholera outbreak
Health
(Al Jazeera) - Health officials have traced the source of a cholera outbreak in a northern province of Iraq to a water treatment plant, a regional health minister has said. Zairyan Othman, health minister for Iraq's Kurdistan region, said on Thursday that samples from the plant in Sulaimaniya had tested positive for the bacterium that causes the disease.
"This is the main reason for cholera spreading so quickly in Sulaimaniya," he said, adding that the number of cases could rise unless the bacterium at the plant is contained. Othman said at least eight people have died from cholera in Kirkuk and Sulaimaniya, two predominantly Kurdish provinces. Dozens more people are being treated in hospital after contracting the disease.
Cholera is a gastrointestinal disease that is spread by drinking contaminated water. Severe cases can cause fatal dehydration. Othman said the Sulaimaniya plant was to be closed for 24 hours to clean its filters, but also said well-water that had not been properly chlorinated had contributed to the cholera outbreak.
Othman visited Kirkuk's Azadi hospital on Wednesday with representatives from Iraq's central health ministry and said there were scores of confirmed cases. "There are 47 cholera cases in Kirkuk and 35 in Sulaimaniya," Othman said during a visit to Kirkuk's Azadi hospital on Wednesday. Dr Burhan Omar, a physician at Azidi hospital, told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that several patients had definite cases of cholera.
"This is the main reason for cholera spreading so quickly in Sulaimaniya," he said, adding that the number of cases could rise unless the bacterium at the plant is contained. Othman said at least eight people have died from cholera in Kirkuk and Sulaimaniya, two predominantly Kurdish provinces. Dozens more people are being treated in hospital after contracting the disease.
Cholera is a gastrointestinal disease that is spread by drinking contaminated water. Severe cases can cause fatal dehydration. Othman said the Sulaimaniya plant was to be closed for 24 hours to clean its filters, but also said well-water that had not been properly chlorinated had contributed to the cholera outbreak.
Othman visited Kirkuk's Azadi hospital on Wednesday with representatives from Iraq's central health ministry and said there were scores of confirmed cases. "There are 47 cholera cases in Kirkuk and 35 in Sulaimaniya," Othman said during a visit to Kirkuk's Azadi hospital on Wednesday. Dr Burhan Omar, a physician at Azidi hospital, told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that several patients had definite cases of cholera.
During his visit to the hospital, Othman said 2,250 people were suffering from diarrhoea in Sulaimaniya and 2,000 in Kirkuk. He said he was ready to provide help to hospitals in Kirkuk that are not part of the three semi-autonomous Kurdish provinces in northern Iraq, as they try to treat cases of the disease. He said that large outbreaks of cholera could affect the capital Baghdad and the central province
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said in a statement released on Wednesday that it had established a programme for monitoring cholera in Iraq. "To date, it is estimated that Sulaimaniya governorate experienced close to 5,000 cases since 10 August, with 10 deaths reported and 51 confirmed cases in Kirkuk," the statement said. The statement said that WHO will establish a surveillance system for water quality control, food inspection and case findings and management. It added that the UN Children's Fund will lead a programme of oral re-hydration therapy for those affected.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said in a statement released on Wednesday that it had established a programme for monitoring cholera in Iraq. "To date, it is estimated that Sulaimaniya governorate experienced close to 5,000 cases since 10 August, with 10 deaths reported and 51 confirmed cases in Kirkuk," the statement said. The statement said that WHO will establish a surveillance system for water quality control, food inspection and case findings and management. It added that the UN Children's Fund will lead a programme of oral re-hydration therapy for those affected.
Labels: cholera, Kirkuk, Kurdistan, Sulaimaniya, WHO, Zairyan Othman
