Lesson from cholera and Vibrio cholerae

Asoke Ghose’s article “Lessons from Cholera and Vibrio cholerae”

Asoke Ghose’s article “Lessons from Cholera and Vibrio cholerae” was published in February 2011. Ghose discusses the advances in cholera research and the broad impact that such progress has had (Ghose, 2011). He also investigated the impact of the worldwide social and political environment on the spread of this epidemic. Cholera, according to Ghose, is one of the diseases with the most explosive onset and severity in human history. Cholera, according to Ghose, develops rapidly and explosively and can result in high morbidity or fatality rates. Ghose argues that due to this enormous effect on human existence, scientists have carried out extensive research to determine the cause, treatment, and prevention of cholera on cholera and Vibrio cholera and this had led to significant discoveries in the biomedical science.

Discovery of Vibrio cholerae bacteria as the cause of cholera

Ghose mentions the discovery of Vibrio cholerae bacteria as the cause of cholera. He argues that the bacteria occur naturally in aquatic habitats and can pass from one person to the other via oral administration of contaminated water on food. Goshe mentioned that the bacteria survive in the complex environment and human intestines because it has two chromosomes. Goshe observes that Vibrio cholerae produced toxin lock enzyme adenylate cyclase-associated with membrane and this lead to loss of water and salt through diarrhea (Ghose, 2011). He argues that the climatic changes related to increased in rainfall can significantly lead to a rise in cholera cases.

Treatment mechanism for cholera

Ghose maintains that oral administration of saline solution served to treat the condition in the nineteenth century. However, the approach has become less effective because some patient could not take the saline solution orally. Ghose recommends the use of oral rehydration solution as a treatment mechanism and state that it has efficiently managed to reduce mortality and morbidity rates in the 20th century. The author contends that Cholera mostly affects people with poor social, economic status particularly in developing countries (Ghose, 2011). Nevertheless, Goshe claims that despite the high rate of deaths associated with the disease it possible to prevent because it enters one’s system via contaminated food and water.

Significance to Course Content and Global Health

The content of the article is appropriate for the nursing course because it provides scientific development in the investigation of cholera. Such extensive research provides in-depth knowledge that a nurse requires before offering care to a patient. It is of particular importance because it presents an explanation on the bacteria that causes cholera and how one can acquire it (Ghose, 2011). The article mentions of contaminated food, water, and contact to stools of the patient as possible ways in which one can get cholera. Such knowledge is relevant to a nursing student because it enables them to know the level of cleanness patient should maintain while in a health institution or a nursing care home.

The article also contributes to the course because it highlights the treatment mechanism applicable to cholera patients. While it appreciates that intake of saline solution through oral mechanism served to the reduced cholera-related mortality rate in the 19th century, the author cautions that such approach is less efficient because most patients could not absorb sodium chloride through oral method. The article proposes the conventional method known as oral rehydration therapy as the most suitable method to treat cholera. Such knowledge is appropriate for nursing because it provides practitioners with the aptest way that can help in the prevention of patient deaths.

Furthermore, the article also mentions of the advancement made on developing cholera vaccine. It argues that science has developed both live and dead vaccines in the attempt of generating a mechanism for preventing cholera. However, both of these approaches have shown limited success. The contribution of such knowledge to nursing is that other prevention mechanisms such as drinking of clean water and eating of fresh food remain the primary prevention methods.

In the global health sector, this article has an immense contribution. First, it highlights the need for further research on the appropriate vaccine to prevent this severe disease. While it mentions of various efforts by scientist to develop suitable prevention mechanism, it also highlights that such attempts have not resulted in a satisfactory outcome. Both the live and dead vaccines have proved quite ineffective. It mentions that researchers proceed with an investigation of the cholera prevention based on available research such as the importance of mucosal antibodies in cholera and present methodologies of stimulating the immune response in the gut, and finally the benefits of antibacterial immunity over cholera antitoxins (Taylor et al., 2015).

Most people who suffer from Cholera live under poor social and economic conditions. The social inequalities due to the difference in race, religion, and color particularly Africa, Asia, and Latin America have significantly contributed to the inability of most cholera patients to receive medical care (Taylor et al., 2015). The majority of people living in this lands cannot adequately access care and may eventually die due to lack of treatment. The situation calls upon health institutions particularly in developing nations to come up with a mechanism that would ensure equitable access to healthcare. The World Health Organization has to coordinate with governments of the different countries to make sure that those who are affected get medical treatment.

References

Ghose, A. C. (2011). Lessons from cholera & Vibrio cholerae. The Indian journal of medical research, 133(2), 164.

Taylor, D. L., Kahawita, T. M., Cairncross, S., & Ensink, J. H. (2015). The impact of water, sanitation and hygiene interventions to control cholera: a systematic review. PLoS One, 10(8), e0135676.