| ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2019 | Volume
: 18
| Issue : 1 | Page : 1-4 |
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Trend of cholera in Iraq in the time of unrest
Ashraf M. A Hussain1, Riyadh K Lafta2
1 Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Babylon, Babylon, Iraq
2 Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine, Mustansiriya University, Baghdad, Iraq; Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington USA
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Ashraf M. A Hussain
Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Babylon, Babylon
Iraq
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | 3 |
DOI: 10.4103/MJ.MJ_40_18
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Background: Countries that are facing war disasters are prone to develop outbreak emergencies especially when this is associated with massive displacement of populations or refugees to overcrowded settings, and when the provision of safe water supply and sanitation is a challenge. Objective: To portray the trend of cholera in Iraq for the last 18 years. Methods: Records of cholera cases registered for the last 18 years were reviewed from the Department of Health Statistics of the Iraqi Ministry of Health and categorized according to the 18 Iraqi governorates; the total of each governorate was computed for the whole studied years and then summed to get the total for Iraq. Data were categorized by gender and age. Rates of occurrence were plotted against time (for the period from 2000 to 2017) to define the trend of the disease. Results: The trend of cholera in Iraq showed four peaks, in 2003, 2007, 2012, and 2015, females showed slightly more cases than males, with a higher incidence among adult age group, and more in the southern provinces. Conclusion: The epidemics of cholera in Iraq are getting progressively more frequent, with higher number of cases forming a real burden on the health system and a serious threat to the community. Efficient preventive health plans are needed to overcome this growing problem that may compromise the life of people.
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