Cholera outbreak in refugee camp in Kivu province, eastern Congo (DRC)

At least 300 people have been infectedan outbreak of cholerain a refugee camp in the eastern province of North Kivu, the
news agencyThe report quoted the head of the north Kivu health department as sayingsince October
22
, at least 300 people in three camps near Goma, the capital of North Kivu province,, developed severe diarrhea
,vomiting and other symptoms, initially diagnosed as choleraThe local health department has not yet received a report of a patient's deathThe official said the patients had been treated by the World Health Organization, thethe United Nations foundation for children'
and a number of non-governmental organizations The cholera epidemic may be linked to refugees drinking untreated lake water in Lake Kivu Since August this year, there have been a number of violent armed clashes between government forces of the of the Congo (
) and rebel Nkunda forces in North Kivu province According to the United Nations Mission in in the Congo (
, the conflict has caused some 57,000 local residents to flee their homes Cholera is an acute intestinal infection caused by Vibrio cholerae, and patients may symptoms such as vomiting
, diarrhea
, dehydration and high fever, will die if they are not treated promptly