Cholera
Currently, no country or territory requires vaccination against cholera as a condition for entry.
Cholera is an acute intestinal infection caused by toxigenic Vibrio cholerae
Treatment
Rehydration is the cornerstone of therapy. Paired with antibiotics this disease is not very threatening.
Location
Resource-poor areas continue to report the vast majority of cases; nearly 95% of cases were reported from Africa
Travelers who follow usual tourist itineraries and who observe food safety recommendations while in countries reporting cholera have virtually no risk. From 1996 through 2005, only 35 confirmed cases of cholera in the U.S. were acquired abroad. The risk is increased for those who drink untreated water or eat poorly cooked or raw seafood in disease-endemic areas.
Symptoms
Cholera is characterized by acute, profuse watery diarrhea, and often vomiting, leading to volume depletion. Signs and symptoms include increase heart beat, loss of skin turgor, dry mucous membranes, hypotension, and thirst. Additional symptoms, including muscle cramps, are secondary to the resulting electrolyte imbalances.
VACCINE
Two oral vaccines are available, only one of which is available outside Vietnam; neither is currently licensed in the United States (1). The manufacture and sale of the only cholera vaccine licensed in the United States (by Wyeth Ayerst) have been discontinued. Because of the low risk of cholera to U.S. travelers and the brief and incomplete immunity that the vaccines confer, vaccination is not currently recommended for U.S. travelers.
