Three hundred and four new cholera cases were recorded during the first three weeks of this year, in six districts of the Greater Accra and Volta regions. There were no deaths.
The disease infections were reported from five districts in Greater Accra Region and one district in the Volta Region.
The Accra metropolis recorded 124 cases; Ga South, 79, Ledzokuku-Krowor, 68, Ga East and La Dade-Kotopon, two each.
The remaining 29 cases were from Wli, a community in the Hohoe municipality of the Volta Region.
Dr. Emmanuel Dzotsi a public health specialist at the Ghana Health Service, who disclosed these to The Ghanaian Times, said the cholera outbreak which hit the country in June last year, was still prevalent in the Greater Accra Region.
He said the outbreak had spilled over from last year, adding that as at January 16, a total of 29,248 cases, including 243 deaths, had been reported from 130 out of the 216 districts in all the 10 regions.
“Between January 5 and 15, six out of 23 stool samples from the Greater Accra Region tested at the National Public Health Reference Laboratory, confirmed positive of Vibrio Cholerae” he said.
Dr. Dzotsi said it is likely for the cholera outbreak to be declared over in the remaining eight regions, since they had not recorded any cholera infections this year.
The medical doctor observed that the possibility of the cholera outbreak recurring in the country was high, considering the continuous existence of the risk factors of the disease.
The risk factors of cholera include inadequate supply of safe water, street vending of water and food, poor liquid and solid waste disposal, choked drains, urban slums, poor food and personal hygiene.
Source: The Ghanaian Times
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