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Summary of the current situation
Haiti
Since the notification of the first two confirmed cases of Vibrio cholerae O1 in the greater Port-au-Prince area on 2 October 2022, to 22 October 2022, the Haitian Ministry of Health (Ministère de la Santé Publique et de la Population, MSPP per its French acronym)2, reported a total of 2,243 suspected cases, including 219 confirmed cases, 1,415 hospitalized suspected cases, and 55 registered deaths.
Of a total of 818 samples analyzed by the National Public Health Laboratory (LNSP per its acronym in French), the positivity rate was 25.3%. The Artibonite, Grand'Anse, Nippes and Sud-Est departments have confirmed their cases by rapid diagnostic tests, while the Center and Ouest cases have been confirmed by culture.
Of the total reported suspected cases with available information, 58% are male and 53% are aged 19 years or younger. The most affected age group is 1 to 4-year-olds, followed by 5 to 9-year-olds (Figure 2).
Among confirmed cases with available age and sex information (205), 46% (94) are aged 19 years or younger and 21% (43) of cases were among children aged 4 years or younger (Figure 3).
The Ouest Department continues to report the highest number of cases, with 97% of all suspected cases recorded (excluding the 271 suspected cases from the Port-au-Prince prison). The communes of Cité-Soleil and Port-au-Prince account for 80% of all suspected cases reported in the Ouest Department (Figure 4).
In the Port-au-Prince prison, an outbreak of cholera has been registered which has identified 271 suspected cases to date, including 12 confirmed cases and 14 deaths.
It should be noted that this outbreak occurs in a context of a complex humanitarian and security crisis in Port-au-Prince and neighbouring cities, where access to health and laboratory services and, therefore, epidemiological surveillance could be affected.
The Pan American Health Organization / World Health Organization (PAHO / WHO) is working in coordination with the Haitian public health authorities to characterize this event and support the response.
Dominican Republic
On 20 October 2022, the Dominican Republic Ministry of Public Health confirmed the first imported case of cholera in the country. This is a 32-year-old woman of Haitian nationality, who entered the Dominican Republic on October 17 from Port-au-Prince and then travelled to the province of La Altagracia. The case began symptoms on October 18 with acute diarrhoea, which is why cholera was suspected. The case was admitted to the Hospital Nuestra Señora de la Altagracia in the municipality of Higuey and is currently under treatment. On October 20, the National Surveillance Laboratory of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Defilló, confirmed the presence of Vibrio cholerae serogroup O1, serotype Ogawa. For now, none of the contacts have presented symptoms. The Ministry's press release is available at: https://bit.ly/3DhfERG.