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November 19, 2009 20:49 PM
174 Cases Of Cholera Reported In Terengganu
PUTRAJAYA, Nov 19 (Bernama) -- The outbreak of cholera in Terengganu which was first reported on Nov 11, has now recorded 174 cases with one death.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said 116 cholera cases detected from 451 patients being treated for diarrhoea in hospitals while 56 cases were contact cases involving 1,074 people.
"Today, there is one cholera patient being treated at the Intensive Care Unit but no new deaths have been reported," he told reporters after chairing a National Food Safety and Nutrition Council meeting here.
He said the disease spread through contaminated food and drinks because of unhygienic food handling.
He said, as for preventive and control measures, the Terengganu health department had inspected 65 premises with 12 premises, including an ice factory, ordered to close because of unsatifactory cleanliness.
He said out of 71 water and food samples tested, 75 samples were found negative for vibrio cholera, the bacteria responsible for cholera, while 86 samples were awaiting testing.
Thirty-six wells had been chlorinated and 304 toilets and garbage disposal areas disinfected, he said, adding that the outbreak in Terenagganu this time involved a new strain as normal antibiotics were ineffective against it.
However, he said there were other types of antibiotics that could cure the disease.
Liow also urged those who experienced cholera symptoms not to take it easy and seek immediate treatment the dehydration as a result of being infected could damage to the kidneys.
He also denied rumours that some food traders were using drinking straws in frying food as banana fritters to them more crisp.
Liow said health inspectors made regular checks on food sellers and that no proof had been found of such activity.
"There are complaints and some worries from the public that hawkers are putting plastic materials into frying oil to make food more crispy, so we do go down to the ground and take samples, but found this to be not true," he said.
At Thursday's meeting, Liow also launched a book entitled "Feeding Baby and Infant Guidelines" aimed at improving the quality of feeding of infants from the day they are born till age of three.
Currently, he said, only 19 per cent of mothers in the country breastfed their babies and only for about six month due to a lack of understanding of breastfeeding, hence, he hoped the book could help to increase awareness.
-- BERNAMA
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