Typhoid is back again

About 16 cases of typhoid have been reported in some parts of the country, with 14 recorded in Harare, a weekly diseases surveillance report by the Ministry of Health and Child Care has indicated.

The report covered week ending June 4. Harare City reported 14 cases, Bindura District in Mashonaland Central Province reported one case, while Murehwa District in Mashonaland East Province reported a single case as well.

According to the report, two cases, which translate to 12,5 percent of the infected, were under the age of five. Cumulatively, a total of 2 371 suspected cases of typhoid fever, 78 confirmed cases and six deaths have been recorded countrywide between January 1 and June 4, 2017.

Typhoid is an infection caused by the bacteria Salmonella typhimurium.

The bacterium lives in the intestines and bloodstream of humans.

It is spread between individuals by direct contact with the faeces of an infected person.

If untreated, one in four cases of typhoid end in death. If treatment is given, less than four in 100 cases are fatal.

Symptoms normally begin six to 30 days after exposure to the bacteria.

The two major symptoms of typhoid are fever and rash. state media