Republic of Congo: Cholera Outbreak - Jul 2023

On July 17, 2023, the Republic of Congo declared an epidemic of cholera, shigellosis and salmonellosis in the city of Dolisie, in the department of Niari. According to local authorities, the first case dates back to June 30 in Dolisie. Since then, similar cases broke out in Dolisie and later in Pointe-Noire, Kouillou and Bouenza. As of 22 July, 30 confirmed cases of cholera and 63 suspected cases were reported, 95% of which were in Dolisie and newly reported cases in Pointe Noire; however, since 1 July, there has been a clear rise in cases spreading to other areas. From the samples analysed, there were also reported cases of shigellosis (14 cases in Dolisie) and salmonellosis. While the case fatality rate is unknown for all ongoing outbreaks, 34 deaths were reported from a total of 122 confirmed cases. (IFRC, 1 Aug 2023)

Following the release of the results of laboratory investigation and clinical examinations, the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Congo officially declared a concurrent outbreak of cholera, shigellosis, and typhoid fever in the country on 17 July 2023. From 28 June to 29 July 2023, a cumulative total of 1689 cases with 37 deaths (case fatality ratio 2.2%) have been reported from five departments (Niari, Pointe Noire, Bouenza, Kouilou, and Brazzaville) in the country. Based on clinical diagnosis and laboratory investigations, the cases have been disaggregated according to disease conditions as follows: shigellosis (919 cases), typhoid fever (705 cases), and cholera (65 cases). Dolisie City in Niari department remains the epicentre of the outbreaks, reporting 93.8% (n = 61) of the cholera cases, 98.0% (n = 901) of shigellosis cases, and 95.9% (n = 649) of typhoid fever cases. (WHO, 6 Aug 2023)