It is expected that in the coming days 1.2 million tests will be distributed to detect the cholera bacteria in a context of increasing cases in different countries.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and associated entities this Friday began a distribution campaign of 1.2 million cholera diagnostic tests in 14 countries, to contain the recent rebound of that disease.
Malawi received first shipment of testing kits and in the coming weeks these will reach “countries seriously affected by cholera epidemics, such as Ethiopia, Somalia, Syria and Zambia“the WHO said in a statement.
The WHO program that provides vaccines to stop cholera
The WHO develops this program together with the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi), which finances and coordinates, and from the UN Fund for Children (Unicef), in charge of supplying the tests. It is also supported by the Global Task Force for Cholera Control (GTFCC).
The death toll from the cholera epidemic in Haiti rose to 1,186.
“We are confronted with a unprecedented multi-year upsurge in cholera cases in the world and today’s announcement gives a decisive boost to the fight against the disease.”Aurelia Nguyen stated in a statement.program director at GAVI.
What is cholera
He Cholera is contracted by a bacteria usually transmitted by water or contaminated food.; It causes diarrhea and vomiting and is particularly dangerous for young children. In recent years there has been an uptick in cases in the world; in 2022, 473,000 were registered, double that of the previous year, and preliminary data indicate that in 2023 they reached more than 700,000.
The Availability of oral cholera vaccines increased 18-fold between 2013 and 2023, But the rapid spread of the disease in recent years caused global hardship, the WHO statement said.
Source: Ambito
