Professor of Medicine, and Environmental & Occupation Health at the University of California in the United States of America (USA) Saurabh Chatterjee says Malawians should look at cholera beyond water, sanitation and hygiene (Wash).
In his presentation yesterday during a public lecture at Malawi University of Business and Applied Science (Mubas) in Blantyre, he observed that there are other factors such as heat waves that exacerbate cholera outbreak in Malawi and other countries.
Chatterjee cited the estimated 58 700 cholera cases and 1 759 deaths that Malawi recorded between March 2022 and May 2023, saying the outbreak was linked to heatwaves that hit most parts of the country in December 2021.
He said: “The heat creates a favourable condition for the multiplication of vibrio cholera pathogens [microorganisms]. We also found that heat stress exposure leads to the change in the way our immune system works.
“The immune system becomes weakened and there are also changes in the gut bacteria population in our body that makes it more susceptible to significant effects of vibriosis-related infections.”
He further established that when people, particularly children, the elderly and chronically ill patients are exposed to heatwave, their intestines develop leakages.
In an interview after the public lecture, Mubas associate professor in environmental sanitation Khumbo Kalulu said the presentation was an eye-opener to both lecturers and students.
He noted that currently most Malawians link cholera to lack of Wash facilities, particularly during the rainy season.
Said Kalulu: “Normally, we associate cholera with water and sanitation practices, but in this case, it gives us more areas that we should be focusing on.”
In the past three years, Malawi has been struggling with cholera. This forced Ministry of Health to launch the Malawi Multisectoral Cholera Control Plan (2025-2030).
