Outbreak Investigation of Cholera in a Slum of Northern India

Cholera is one of the oldest and best understood endemic diseases. An actual bacterial enteric disease, it is characterized in its severe form by sudden onset, profuse painless watery stools (rice-water stool), nausea and profuse vomiting early in the course of illness. Endemic and pandemics are strongly linked to the consumption of unsafe water, poor hygiene, poor sanitation and crowded living conditions. A rapid survey was conducted for the outbreak investigation on August 4, 2008. The objectives were to investigate the outbreak, risk factors for cholera and recommend control measures immediately. Questionnaire based random convenient sample based investigative study. 60 families were contacted by the public health students. Approximate 300 individuals were screened for cholera cases. Simultaneously six water samples were also collected from the contacted family. Microbiological test for Vibrio cholera and E. coli was conducted. Randomly six water samples were collected from the Rajive colony. Microbiological test for Vibrio cholera and E. coli was conducted from the department of Microbiology, PU. Vibrio cholera and E. coli were found absent, in all the samples. One sample was found positive for unidentified bacteria.