Iraq faces four different epidemics at the same time
A veterinary worker sprays a livestock farm in Kirkuk with disinfectant. Photo: Al-Arabiya
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday that Iraq is facing four different epidemics at the same time, in addition to possible emergence of cases infected with monkeypox in the country.
The spokesperson for the Iraqi Ministry of Health, Saif Al-Badr, made it clear that Iraq entered the fifth wave of the Coronavirus epidemic as the number of infections exceeded 4800 as of Wednesday.
Badr also elaborated that the ministry recorded 39 new cases infected with cholera on Wednesday, bringing the total number of infections to more than 200, including at least two deaths in Kirkuk and Baghdad.
Additionally, Badr indicated that the Iraqi health authorities are facing the spread of two other epidemics which are rabies and Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever. The Congo fever led to two deaths so far.
In 2015, Iraq witnessed the largest epidemic wave of cholera outbreaks, concentrated in Baghdad and Babylon in the southern part of the country, causing about 1,809 confirmed infections and 65 deaths.
Statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO) indicate that about four million people get infected with the disease annually, and leads to deaths ranging from 21 thousands to 143 thousands worldwide.
The provision of clean water and sanitation is crucial to preventing cholera, which causes severe diarrhea that can lead to death within hours if left untreated.