Health Dept confirms cholera case in Durban
The National Health Department says they have picked up another case of cholera, this time on a man who travelled from Pakistan to Durban.
They say the 24-year-old Durban man landed at the King Shaka International Airport just over a week ago after travelling to Karachi.
Health spokesperson Foster Mohale says he had already been experiencing abdominal cramps, vomiting and diarrhoea after eating a meal two days earlier.
Mohale says the man reported symptoms but did not immediately seek medical attention in Pakistan.
"On his arrival through King Shaka International Airport, he felt dehydrated and was taken to a Private Hospital in Durban to seek medical help, and he was then admitted on the 18th of July while his specimen was sent to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases for laboratory testing.
"The results came back positive with cholera toxin on Monday, 24 July 2023. He has been discharged and recovering well at home."
Mohale says the outbreak response team has begun contact tracing and has identified four family members and a friend who lived with the man in Pakistan.
"None of the contacts identified are presenting with cholera symptoms and are on continuous close monitoring.
"On the other hand, water samples were collected from the patient's place of residence and taken for laboratory testing at the National Health Laboratory Service.
"This case increases the total number of imported cholera cases recorded this year to three, following two cases detected from two people who travelled from Malawi."
