
By SIPOKAZI FOKAZI/iol.co.za
Cape Town – At least four children have died and hundreds more have been admitted to hospitals across the province as the notorious diarrhoea season gains momentum, which mostly affects children.
In Khayelitsha more than 800 children were treated for diarrhoea at City of Cape Town clinics during the week from February 7, while 150 children were admitted to provincial tertiary hospitals.
At the weekend, Red Cross Children’s Hospital admitted 28 children with gastroenteritis. The previous weekend they admitted 22 children.
Dr Ivan Bromfield, head of health in the city, said Khayelitsha remained the worst affected area with a number of moderate to severe diarrhoea cases being reported.
Of the 865 cases of diarrhoea recorded in Khayelitsha during the week from February 7, 14 percent were moderate and 3 percent involved severe dehydration.
While the regular diarrhoea season has not yet peaked – it is expected to do so next month – a substantial number of children have been admitted to hospitals for gastric-related conditions, according to Mark van der Heever, spokesman for the provincial Health Department.
At least 300 children have been admitted to Red Cross since January, with Tygerberg Hospital recording about 120 diarrhoea-related admissions during the same period.
Aside from those 420 hospital admissions, provincial clinics and hospitals in the metro region have also seen about 400 cases so far this year.
But Van der Heever said these numbers did not constitute an outbreak. The season was in fact quieter than the same period last year.
“About 30 percent fewer cases were admitted in January this year than in January 2010 and 2009. February is also down compared to last year so far,” he said.
To the medical fraternity, warm summer months are known as the diarrhoea season. Heat encourages bacteria to breed, leading to serious gastric illnesses.
In informal settlements, where there is poor sanitation, residents are particularly at risk of being affected by diarrhoea. The cases, which start around November, usually peak during February and March.
Van der Heever said other areas affected by gastric infections included Dunoon, Wallacedene, Langa, Nyanga, Imizamo Yethu in Hout Bay, Delft and Browns Farm.
As part of creating awareness about the risks of falling ill, both the department and the city were conducting educational talks at clinics.
Bromfield said that as part of their diarrhoea intervention plan, and for investigation purposes, city authorities were visiting families where there were severe diarrhoea cases, including diarrhoea deaths.
Authorities were hopeful that the rotavirus vaccine, as part of the national immunisation programme, would help reduce the number of cases of diarrhoea and related deaths, as these were often caused by the rotavirus.
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