Cholera infections growing among children in Sudan’s El Gedaref

Health sources from Sudan’s El Gedaref state revealed the death of a child and infection of several others with cholera on Tuesday and Wednesday. Contaminated drinking water is the suspected source.

The medics told Radio Dabanga that El Gallabat East locality recorded the death of a child and infection of four others with cholera at El Gireishi hospital while El Hamra area recorded three cases of the disease on Tuesday.

Cases of cholera are also suspected at Wedel Zein area of El Gedaref, while Sabonia area of West El Gallabat locality recorded three cases.

MP Mohammed Babiker Mohamed of the El Gedaref State legislative Council announced 19 cases of ‘watery diarrhoea’ at El Gireishi hospital, including the case of an 11-year -old girl called Shamail Abdullah.

Yesterday he said in his comments that most of the cases were caused by drinking contaminated water. He criticised the state Ministry of Health for ignoring of the health conditions in the locality and the villages adjacent to the dam lake.

Specialists

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 accordance with WHO guidelines the Ahmed Gasim Hospital in Khartoum proved it to be cholera.