New cholera cases in El Gedaref, in Red Sea ‘under control’

Health workers in eastern Sudan reported that four new cases of cholera have emerged in several areas. Red Sea state said that the outbreak has been brought under control, praising the activities of civil society organisations.

Basunda, El Hamra and El Baburi in El Gedaref recorded the cases on Sunday, while one person with cholera was reported in Darel Zain on Saturday, an authorised health source speaking to Radio Dabanga said.

He said that there are continued efforts of civil society organisations in an attempt to combat the disease, in addition to the state health authorities’ distribution of medicines to various health facilities.

Two weeks ago, a health worker reported that the isolation ward at El Gedaref hospital was overcrowded with patients infected with cholera as the rate of infections resumed rising after a period of decreasing.

The federal Health Ministry reported in late January that 333 people were suffering from the deadly disease in El Gedaref, Red Sea, and Khartoum states.

The Sudanese government persists in calling the disease, which broke out six months ago in parts of eastern Sudan and El Gezira, acute watery diarrhoea instead of cholera. According to specialists including the Doctors' Executive Committee in January, the results of laboratory tests on acute diarrhoea samples conducted in the Ahmed Gasim Hospital in Khartoum proved it to be cholera.

Red Sea state

The Ministry of Health in Red Sea state announced a decrease of the number of cholera cases no new cases were registered in the past week. On Monday, Dr Fateh El Rabi, the director-general of the ministry, told Radio Dabanga that the state has been able to fully contain the disease.

“State health authorities have not yet reached the source of infection, that research is still underway to identify the source.”

He reassured the Red Sea residents about the disease and stressed the stability in the state's health conditions.

El Rabi praised the role of civil society organisations and the state government for collaborating with the Ministry of Health in the fight against the disease.