This is a scary infection. Cholera is a disease that is contracted by consuming water or food contaminated by bacteria. It causes violent diarrhea which leads to severe dehydration. In mainland France, the risk of contracting cholera is almost zero, because it is transmitted especially when the sanitation system poorly treats wastewater. “There is no transmission by skin-to-skin contact between humans or respiratory contact. You must be able to ingest the live bacteria.”, explains Dr. Pauline Naudion, infectious disease doctor at Saint-Antoine hospital (AP-HP, Paris 12th). For infected people, the emergency is hospitalization. The patient is isolated, rehydrated and can be given antibiotics. Without treatment, the risk is to die within a few hours. When a cholera patient is identified, those around him are tested. To limit any risk of epidemic in mainland France, there is also a protocol for airlines. As soon as a traveler shows signs of cholera, all passengers must be contacted and vaccinated preventively. Every year, there are up to four million cases worldwide. Regarding the Metropolis, according to the latest figures from Public Health France, in eight years, only sixteen cases of cholera have been detected in travelers coming from Asia and America. TF1 | Report A. Creff, I. Bornacin
