Cholera kills 162 children in 10 months

Cholera has killed at least 162 children aged between zero and four with more than 9 000 infected since the onset of the outbreak in March last year, the Ministry of Health has said.

Speaking in an interview yesterday, the ministry’s spokesperson Adrian Chikumbe did not give a breakdown by gender, but said most of the children came from homes that had registered cases.

He said: “They must have taken food that was already contaminated. The prevention measures for children are similar to those for adults. Hygiene is key in cholera prevention.

“We are working with the Ministry of Water and Sanitation as well as the Ministry of Education to make sure that children are not exposed to cholera.”

Health systems research and management expert Professor Maureen Chirwa described the situation as sad, saying the nation’s future lies in children.

She advised parents to ensure that their children are well fed because cholera is worse for malnourished children as their immunity is already compromised.

Chirwa said: “Parents must practice principles of hygiene by making sure they give their children clean food and water, wash hands whenever they change nappies on their baby, make sure the children are not left unattended to crawl all over the place and eat anything they pick from the ground and avoid giving children salads.”

As of Sunday, the country had reported a total of 563 new cases and 25 new deaths bringing the total number of cases and deaths to 34 918 and 1 133 respectively. A total of 1 183 are currently in the treatment centres.

Since the onset of the outbreak, in March 2022, Mangochi has reported 6 756 cases and 113 deaths, followed by Blantyre with 5 230 cases and 174 deaths and Lilongwe 5 058 cases and 302 deaths.

The ministry has since advised the public to always drink clean water, eat clean food, wash hands with soap and safe water and use toilets properly.