What should you know about cholera and malaria?

Cholera affects the intestine and can remove water and salts from the body quickly through watery stools and vomiting. Malaria is transmitted by infected mosquitoes and can cause fever, chills, headache, muscle aches and profound tiredness. The two illnesses are not interchangeable, and one does not protect against the other. A person with diarrhoea and fever may have either condition, both, or another infection; symptoms alone cannot establish the cause.

Explore [Diarrhoea](/symptoms/diarrhoea/) for practical information about fluid loss.

If watery diarrhoea is present, begin correctly prepared oral rehydration solution in small, frequent sips and arrange same-day medical advice. If fever follows travel or residence in a malaria area, tell the clinician where and when exposure occurred; malaria testing and specific medicine may be needed. Do not self-treat a suspected malaria infection with leftover medicine. [Oral Rehydration Therapy](/treatments/acute-and-urgent-care/oral-rehydration-therapy/) supports fluid replacement, while [IV Fluid Therapy](/treatments/acute-and-urgent-care/iv-fluid-therapy/) may be needed when vomiting, weakness or dehydration prevents adequate drinking.

Go urgently for confusion, fainting, difficulty breathing, seizures, inability to drink, repeated vomiting, very little urine, or rapidly worsening weakness. Fever after possible malaria exposure deserves prompt assessment even when diarrhoea is absent. Watery stools with severe thirst, dizziness, dry mouth or cold extremities can signal dangerous dehydration and should not wait for symptoms to settle.

Ask which tests distinguish malaria from other fever causes, whether stool testing is appropriate, how to mix and use rehydration solution, and which symptoms should trigger emergency treatment.