Fiji reports 60 cases of typhoid

There are 60 typhoid cases in Nanoko, with 29 already hospitalized, according to Fiji's Health Ministry. Senior Health Inspector Paula Laqere said Sunday that the increas means that people are not practicing proper hygiene standards. Laqere said most of the communities in Fiji have a really low level of good hygiene practices. The other problem is that some communities in Fiji have very poor sources of clean and safe water and this is what Fijian guests need to be cautious of. "Typhoid is basically spread through contaminated water and our hygiene practices. It's an indicator that the sanitation level of any community is really low." A 30 day public health emergency is in place for the village, effective from Dec. 12 to Jan. 12. Recently, Fiji recorded rates of high typhoid fever in the world, said WHO South Pacific Communicable Disease Surveillance and Response Team leader doctor Jacob Kool.Kool said typhoid fever was difficult to diagnose and could be fatal in 10-20 percent of untreated patients. Recent studies showed that infants are commonly affected and are extremely vulnerable to the disease. Outbreaks occur regularly in areas with poor hygiene and sanitation including urban slums, he said. Kool said the only reliable symptom was prolonged fever and blood and stool culture are still the best available diagnostic tests but have a high rate of false negative results. He said therefore suspected typhoid cases should be treated regardless of the result of lab tests and ciprofloxacin was the recommended therapy for all age groups.Last year AusAID, WHO and UNICEF launched a typhoid fever vaccination campaign in Fiji.