As water officials dispatch clean water to typhoid-affected Delmas in Mpumalanga, one confirmed sufferer is being discharged from hospital, officials said on Thursday.
”There are no new cases at Glynnwood hospital, but one patient who tested positive is being discharged, one more tested positive and another is awaiting results,” said Marietjie Shelly of the hospital holding company, Life Health Care.
After a meeting on Thursday, provincial health spokesperson John Mlangeni said there were still 380 cases of diarrhoea, 30 suspected cases of typhoid and nine confirmed cases.
”All clinics in the area are now going 24 hours to assist the hospitals,” he said.
Eugene Marais hospital in Pretoria had no new cases, and four-year-old Rochelle Potgieter’s condition was markedly improved.
Parklands clinic in Springs had 21 patients, 12 of whom were children.
Only two Parklands patients were confirmed as having typhoid.
”Even if cases are not confirmed, all preventative measures are taken to ensure there is no threat to other patients,” Shelly said.
The outbreak originated in the town’s water supply, suspected to have been contaminated with human faeces, said Lucille Blumberg, head of the outbreak unit at the National Institute for Communicable Diseases.
Local government spokesperson Simphiwe Kunene said water is being chlorinated and chemicals are being provided to residents who are being educated on water purification.
The number of health personnel in the area has been increased in light of the outbreak.
Kunene said a team of experts was also sent to investigate the recent outbreak.
”They will also examine the type of intervention that is required.”
Typhoid fever is usually prevalent in underdeveloped countries. It is caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhi and spreads through contaminated food and water. If a person carries the bacteria and does not wash his or her hands, it could spread through person-to-person contact, Shelly said.
”It is not an airborne disease and is not spread by droplets or coughing.”
Blumberg said the incubation period is two to three weeks, so even if the disease is brought under control, cases will still occur. — Sapa