Nigeria: Nearly 1,000 cholera cases reported in January
The large cholera outbreak that plagued the west Africa nation of Nigeria in 2013 appears to have continued its course during the first month of 2014, according to data published on Catholic Online Sunday.
Image/CIA
Based on official government epidemiological data, the report states that Nigeria has recorded 952 cases of the severe diarrheal infection during the first four weeks of this year.
It appears to be a continuation of 2013 where the country reported 6,600 cases and 229 deaths, a ten-fold increase from 2012.
States hit hardest by the bacterial disease include Kano, which has seen hundreds of cases since the beginning of the year.
Cholera is a bacterial disease that can cause diarrhea and dehydration. Cholera is most often spread through the ingestion of contaminated food or drinking water. Water may be contaminated by the feces of an infected person or by untreated sewage. Food is often contaminated by water containing cholera bacteria or by being handled by a person ill with cholera.
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