BY GODWIN IJEDIOGOR
THE Delta State Government has been able to curtail the ravaging cholera disease in the state.
Commissioner for Health, Dr. Joseph Onojaeme, who disclosed this Tuesday, July 30, in Asaba, while briefing journalists on how the government was managing the outbreak of the disease, said the state has recorded a total of 138 cases, with seven deaths since the outbreak in February this year, with majority of the cases being children.
Flanked by the Commissioner for Information, Dr. Ifeanyi Osuoza, and Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the Governor, Sir Festus Ahon, Onojaeme explained that the seven casualties were recorded during the first of the three outbreaks in the country, while no casualty has been recorded in the second and third epidemics.
He said: “The signs and symptoms are basically passage of watery low stool, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, among others.
“The state has recorded 138 cases in Warri South-West Local Council, where it started, and in the second and third outbreaks, we had seven cases in Bomadi and one in Oshimili South Local Councils.
“We have been able to curtail the disease in Delta State and the disease surveillance and notification officers across the state have been able to carry out a lot of advocacy to our people to educate them about the cause of the disease.
“Cholera is mainly a disease of poor sanitary environment and we have educated them about simple hand washing and not taking unclean water. We have also provided tablets to purify some of these unclean waters.
“So far so good, since about six weeks now in Warri South-West, we had only 20 suspected cases and majority of the cases have treated and basically under control.
“We are doing a lot of advocacy and the risk factors are basically poor sanitary condition and reduced stomach acid. Cholera has an incubation period of 12 days and within this period, somebody not showing these symptoms can spread it through faeces and urine to other persons.
“Staying with somebody with the bacteria is a big risk factor in contacting the bacteria from that person, so maintaining hygiene is very key to eliminating cholera from our environment and it is common among villages along the water banks.”
The commissioner added: “”In Delta State, we have eight local governments that are of high risk- Warri South, Warri South-West, Warri North, Ughelli North, Ughelli South, Patani, Bomadi and Burutu.
“So far, the ministry has curtailed the disease within the high risk local government areas and the epidemiology unit of the ministry is doing a lot of surveillance on these patients and it’s fully under control.”
