The Health Bureau (SSM) warned the public in a statement yesterday of the risk of contracting the cholera bacterium when travelling outside the city, quoting an announcement by the World Health Organisation (WHO) that a cholera pandemic has broken out in south-eastern Africa recently.
As of last Monday, the statement said, cholera cases had been reported in 24 countries, mainly in Africa and the Middle East, and the risk of a global cholera outbreak was estimated to be high.
The statement said vaccines and other medical resources were not sufficient due to the expanding coverage of the outbreak, adding that Macau had not had a cholera outbreak since 1998.
According to the statement, cholera is a virulent intestinal disease with an incubation period of two to three days, which can be as short as a few hours or as long as four to five days.
Cholera is spread mainly through contaminated water or food and is usually endemic in the summer and autumn, peaking in July and August, the statement said, adding that the symptoms of cholera include violent diarrhoea, vomiting, passing large amounts of watery stools and severe dehydration, which can lead to death in severe cases if left untreated, the statement said.
