Angola cholera and public health infrastructure

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Death toll in Angola cholera exceeds 1,500

LISBON, Portugal - An outbreak of cholera has killed 1,576 people

since February, the World Health Organization said Wednesday.

As of May 31, the African country had reported a total of 41,475

cases in 13 of its 18 provinces.

The overall fatality rate stood at 3.8 percent, far above the 1

percent the WHO considers average. Although current trends showed a

decline in most provinces, a daily incidence of around 250-300 cases

was still being reported, it said.

Cholera is transmitted through contaminated water and is linked to

poor hygiene, overcrowding and inadequate sanitation. It can be

treated easily, but is a major killer in developing countries.

Angola's public infrastructure, including health care, crumbled

during a two-decade civil war that ended in 2002.

About a quarter of the 4 million people in Luanda, the capital, live

in shantytowns.

http://news./s/ap/20060607/ap_on_he_me/angola_cholera_1

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