The UN World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced a spike in cholera in several regions, with nearly 195,000 cases and over 1,900 deaths reported in 24 countries since the start of this year.
The highest number of cases was reported in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, followed by the African Region, the Americas, Southeast Asia, and Europe. Notably, no cases were reported in the Western Region.
WHO stated on Thursday that the global stockpile of Oral Cholera Vaccines (OCV) was exhausted by March, yet they exceeded the emergency target of five million doses by early June 2024. Despite this, vaccine supply does not meet the high demand. Since January last year, 16 countries requested 92 million doses of OCV, nearly double the 49 million produced.
WHO, UNICEF, and other partners are collaborating to find long-term solutions for cholera.
In positive health news, WHO announced on Thursday that Chad successfully eradicated “sleeping sickness” as a public health problem. The agency commended Chad for eliminating the gambiense form of human African trypanosomiasis.
“I congratulate the government and the people of Chad for this achievement. It is great to see Chad join the growing group of countries that have eliminated at least one neglected tropical disease (NTD),” said Tedros Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. Chad joins about 50 other countries that have succeeded in this endeavor, moving closer to the 100-country target set for addressing NTDs by 2030.
Sleeping sickness can initially cause flu-like symptoms, eventually leading to behavior changes, confusion, sleep disturbances, coma, and often death. Improved access to early diagnosis, treatment, surveillance, and response has proven effective in controlling and eliminating the disease.
