Iraq confirms 13 cholera cases, scores suspected

• Cholera outbreak in Iraq has infected at least 13 people, health officials say.
• Scores more suspected cases from northern Kurdistan region sent for testing.
• Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal disease that is treatable with antibiotics and hydration.

A cholera outbreak in Iraq has infected at least 13 people, and scores more suspected cases, mostly from the northern Kurdistan region, have been sent for testing, according to health officials on Sunday.

According to Sabah Hawrami, district health chief in the autonomous Kurdistan region, “ten cases of cholera have been recorded in the province” of Sulaimaniyah.

Another 56 suspected cases from the same province are being examined by a central laboratory in Baghdad, which is the only one capable of making the diagnosis.

The health ministry said one case had been registered in Kirkuk province, neighboring Sulaimaniyah, while two were recorded in the southern province of Muthanna.

No deaths have yet been registered.

“Around 4,000 cases of diarrhoea and vomiting have been recorded in Sulaimaniyah hospitals” in the past six days, Hawrami told a press conference.

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The provincial capital of Sulaimaniyah counts around one million people.

“Cholera is a terrible illness but can be easily treated. We can save lives in a matter of hours,” he added.

The country’s last broad outbreak “dates back to 2015”, health ministry spokesman Seif al-Badr told AFP.

The central provinces of Baghdad and Babil to its south were the worst affected during that outbreak, with hundreds ill.

The last registered cholera cases in Sulaimaniyah province were in 2012.

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Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal disease that is treatable with antibiotics and hydration but can kill within hours without medical attention.

It is caused by a germ that is usually spread through poor sanitation. People become infected when they consume contaminated food or water.

According to the World Health Organization, there are between 1.3 million and four million cases of cholera worldwide each year, resulting in between 21,000 and 143,000 deaths.