What we know about the death of a three-year-old child from cholera in Mayotte

“This is a collective disgrace, a health disaster,” condemns the island’s MP, Estelle Yusuffa. The cholera epidemic in Mayotte has caused the first death of a three-year-old child in the commune of Cungou, the prefecture and the Regional Health Agency announced this Wednesday.

The first death came on the eve of a visit by Health Minister Frederic Valletu to the Indian Ocean island planned for several days. We take stock of what we know about this tragedy and the health situation on the peninsula.

The child who was in the slums

“The first child died today,” the prefecture and the Regional Health Agency wrote in a joint press release. “The child lived in the Kungu area, where several cases of cholera have been detected in recent weeks. »

According to details provided on RTL radio this Thursday by Mayotte MP Estelle Yusuffa, the victim is a child who lived “in the slums of Kungu”. “These slums are often inhabited by Comorians,” she explains. According to INSEE, in Mayotte in 2017, 48% of the population had foreign citizenship. The vast majority of foreigners come from the Comoros Islands.

“The precarious housing of migrants arriving in Mayotte in search of food from the neighboring Comoros islands contributes to the spread of cholera, which is a disease of underdevelopment and extreme poverty,” explains epidemiologist Antoine Flahaut to France 24.

Acute diarrhea and vomiting

The child’s cholera is a bacterial disease that can cause severe diarrhea and lead to death from dehydration within one to three days. It is caused by ingesting food or water contaminated with the bacteria Vibrio cholerae or Vibrio cholerae.

Three quarters of infected people show no symptoms. But when it does, in 10 to 20 percent of cases, the illness can be severe, with severe diarrhea and vomiting that causes accelerated dehydration. However, there are effective vaccines and treatments.

Difficult sanitary conditions

“This death of a child reminds us that cholera is a deadly disease that takes root in the French department, which is a medical desert,” the deputy expressed regret, adding that the island has only one hospital and five emergency doctors for almost 321 thousand people . residents, according to the latest INSEE estimates.

Some residents live in difficult material conditions and with very limited access to water. “An explosive cocktail for a deadly disease,” she sums up.

“The situation at the Mayotte hospital center in terms of human resources remains very critical, especially in the emergency department,” Olivier Braic, director general of ARS, also admitted in an interview with France 24.

“Native” cases from the end of April

The first cases of cholera in Mayotte were recorded in mid-March among people returning from neighboring Comoros, where the latest official report shows the epidemic is growing rapidly, with 98 deaths.

The first “native” cases, diagnosed in patients who did not leave the French Indian Ocean island, appeared at the end of April in the French department. Since mid-March, Mahore authorities have recorded 58 cholera cases, including six active cases, according to the latest report on May 6.

The protocol developed in February to prevent the spread of the disease includes disinfection of the patient’s home, identification and treatment of contact persons, as well as “ring” vaccination, gradually expanding the area around the home of the cholera patient.

Ongoing vaccination campaign

According to the Regional Health Agency, the vaccination campaign continues and more than 4,000 people have been vaccinated to date. Not enough for MP Estelle Yusuffa, who is calling for a mass voluntary vaccination campaign.

As a result of climate change and increased conflict, the number of cholera cases is currently rising rapidly around the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) emphasizes.

In mainland France, the disease has become very rare and is mainly reported by travelers returning from infected countries or areas, with an average of zero to two cases reported per year since the early 2000s, according to the Ministry of Health.