PRETORIA - Officials are trying to curb a typhoid Fever outbreak in Tshwane.
At last 13 cases have been reported in Hammanskraal and Bronkhorstspruit.
The spike in the cases has now caused renewed fears about ongoing water safety problems in the metro.
READ | Desperate Hammanskraal residents drink contaminated water
To date Gauteng Health Department has reported 48 cases since January.
The illness is spread through the ingestion of contaminated food or water, and can be life-threatening if untreated.
Tebogo Matjokotja from Communicable Disease Control at the Gauteng Department of Health says while there is no need to cause panic it is important for residents to be aware and cautions this as to prohibit rapid spread of the illness.
Matiokotja emphasises the need for people to practice precautionary measures by observing their hygiene.
"So far we have not asserted the source of the disease but we are busy analysing some of the results. We have given the municipality to give feedback to the outbreak response team on what they have detected,"
While there may be questions on why such illness is rising in areas like hammanskraal given previous warnings on water safety, Matiokotja outlines challenges such as detection.
"Typhoid unlike other diseases like Cholera, it is can stay of those diseases that can stay in a person for years. A person can be a carrier and still share the bacteria while being asymptomatic. This means they do not show any signs of the disease yet they are carrying it and spreading it throughout the community,"
Another shortfall she highlighted is the lack of follow ups from patients who have been detected with the disease to ensure that they have been cleared.
"Ideally after being diagnosed and given antibiotics, they should go back to the health facility to be retested at least three times. This is to ensure that they are assured that we do not have any one roaming around carrying the disease," she said.
According to an article by World Health Organisation published on 23 March 2023, persons with typhoid fever carry the bacteria in their bloodstream and intestinal tract.
Some of the symptoms include prolonged :
- High fever
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Nausea
- Abdominal pain
- Constipation or diarrhoea.
- Some patients may have a rash.
The article further reveals how typhoid fever can be treated with antibiotics although 'increasing resistance to different types of antibiotics is making treatment more complicated' .
WHO shares the following precautionary measures for people being treated for typhoid fever to do the following:
- Take prescribed antibiotics as prescribed by the doctor
- Wash you hands with soap and water
- Food handlers should practice good hygiene