Occurrence of cholera in Lukanga fishing camp, Kapiri-mposhi district, Zambia

Abstract

Most of the cholera outbreaks in Zambia have been recorded from fishing camps and peri-urban areas of the Copperbelt, Luapula and Lusaka provinces. Cholera cases have been recorded every year in the Lukanga fishing camps in the last five years. This article documents a cholera outbreak reported at the Lukanga fishing camp in Kapiri Mposhi district in September, 2016. All cases that met the cholera case definition as prescribed in the Integrated Diseases Surveillance and Response guidelines were admitted and treated using WHO standard protocols. A total of 27 patients all adult except 1, 26 of whom were male were seen at the cholera treatment center. Two facility deaths were recorded during the outbreak. All cases were linked to the fishing camps, lack of clean drinking water and poor sanitary conditions among other factors. The incubation period was about 4 days. All patients responded well to treatment with doxycycline and intravenous fluids. There were 2 facility deaths recorded; Case Fatality Rate (CFR): 7.4%. All cases tested on RDT and the water samples were positive for cholera. The outbreak on the Lukanga swamps is associated with choleravibrio. There is need to employ interventions in the area of water and sanitation on the Lukanga swamps in order to address the annual cholera outbreaks.