Fourth case of cholera confirmed

A 23-year-old Indonesian domestic helper was yesterday confirmed to be suffering from cholera, disease control experts said.

It is the fourth case of cholera in Hong Kong this year, and the third involving a newly arrived Indonesian helper.

The woman started getting diarrhoea and abdominal pain on August 2, before arriving in Hong Kong to take up her job on August 5, said the Centre for Health Protection (CHP). She consulted a doctor two days later, before being admitted to Yan Chai Hospital. She was transferred to the infectious-disease unit of Princess Margaret Hospital, where she was in a stable condition last night.

In the first week of June, Indonesia reported 1,338 cases of cholera, including 19 deaths, according to the latest figures from the Department of Health.

A spokesman for the CHP said it had not issued any special travel advisory to the 90,000 Indonesian domestic helpers in Hong Kong.

On Monday, a 25-year-old Indonesian helper was confirmed with cholera three days after her arrival. A 27-year-old was confirmed with the disease on June 24, days after arriving on June 15.

Hong Kong's fourth cholera case involved a 40-year-old local woman whose case was announced on July 14. The woman had no travel history and her case is the only locally contracted one so far this year. All four cases involved the Vibrio cholerae 01 Ogawa strain of the bacteria.

Cholera is an acute disease of the gastrointestinal tract.