YEMEN鈥檚 cholera death toll last week exceeded 1500, and the number of cases there will soon reach 250,000. Fresh medical supplies should help treat more people, but won鈥檛 be enough to stop the epidemic鈥檚 spread.
Cholera is caused by ingesting food or water contaminated with Vibrio cholerae bacteria. The resulting severe diarrhoea and dehydration can be deadly, although oral rehydration solutions or intravenous fluid are easy and effective treatments. In Yemen, however, two years of civil war have put the healthcare system under huge strain, and cholera has been spreading for several months.
鈥淲e鈥檙e currently in a situation of treating patients, but not limiting the spread of cholera鈥�
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The arrival of a shipment of supplies from the World Health Organization on 2 July should help. It includes 20 ambulances, 100 cholera kits and 128,000 bags of intravenous fluid.
But doctorsin Yemen say this won鈥檛 end the epidemic. 鈥淢ore than half the health structures within the country are not functioning, and health workers haven鈥檛 been paid since August 2016,鈥� says Ghassan Abou Chaar, head of the M茅dicins Sans Fronti猫res mission to Yemen.
To bring the epidemic under control, action to prevent the transmission of V. cholerae through contaminated water is needed, says Chaar. 鈥淲e鈥檙e currently in a situation of treating patients, but not limiting the spread,鈥� he says.
This article appeared in print under the headline 鈥淚n cholera鈥檚 grip鈥�
