Nairobi and Meru counties on high alert over Cholera outbreak
Nairobi and Meru counties have been flagged as possible hotspots for the increasing spread of Cholera outbreak after 24 suspected new cases were screened in Nairobi and two more in Meru.
According to the Ministry of Health (MoH) situational report, six suspected cases were screened at Mbagathi Hospital and eight others at Mama Lucy Hospital.
On Thursday last week, Meru county reported two new cases identified out of eight suspected cases.
The two patients are said to have traveled from Nairobi to Meru.
A fortnight ago, weeks MoH issued a Cholera update alert following confirmation of 61 cases across six counties.
The outbreak which originated from Kiambu spread to Nairobi, Murang’a, Kajiado and Uasin Gishu counties.
According to a health situation report from the county government of Nairobi, the outbreak started with people who had attended a wedding which was held in Red Hill Gardens, Limuru Sub County, Kiambu county in October this year.
“The outbreak has now extended across the counties to people who had not attended the event. A total of one hundred and thirty-eight (138) cases ,15 Confirmed by culture and four (4) deaths (CFR 2.9 per cent) have been reported.” The report indicated.
Cholera is transmitted through ingestion of contaminated water, as well as improper sanitary conditions.
Most parts of Nairobi are risky due to burst sewage lines and water systems, with the short rains now being experienced this could lead to a potential outbreak, Cholera can be prevented by boiling drinking water.
In Nairobi alone, 84 cases have been reported involving 43 males and 41 females and three deaths.
