Daily Post Nigeria INTERVIEW: Cholera: Many people don’t know they have been infected – Scientist, Umeh Home News Politics Metro Entertainment Sport Health INTERVIEW: Cholera: Many people don’t know they have been infected – Scientist, Umeh Published on July 8, 2024 By Matthew Atungwu Following the recent outbreak of cholera in Nigeria and the upsurge of its confirmed cases and fatalities in many states of the federation, a pharmacist, Umeh Camillus Chibueze, MD/CEO of Camillus Pharmaceuticals, says most people are unaware they have been infected. He adds that the government is not doing enough to stem the tide. In this interview with DAILY POST, he x-rays the dangers of the epidemic, causes, symptoms, mode of transmission and the preventive measures to curb its spread.
Excerpts: What is the cholera epidemic all about? Cholera is an epidemic or infectious disease that causes severe watery diarrhea, which can lead to dehydration and even death if left untreated. It is caused by eating food or drinking water contaminated with a bacterium called Vibrio cholerae. The disease is most common in places with poor sanitation, crowding, war, and famine and where there are poor latrines and no proper mode of defecation like using a pit toilet.
Contaminated hands, eating contaminated vegetables, fruits and drinking from well or tap water are major spreads of cholera. So, in other words, cholera is an epidemic that spreads very fast and the common symptoms have to do with diarrhea.
