What should you know about vibrio cholerae food poisoning?

Vibrio cholerae is acquired through contaminated food or water. Illness can begin with diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting or abdominal discomfort; fever is not always prominent. Stools may become very watery and frequent. The illness can remove water and salts faster than drinking replaces them, leading to thirst, dry mouth, dizziness, weakness, reduced urine or unusual drowsiness. Other foodborne infections can look similar, so a clinician may use the exposure history and symptoms to decide whether testing is needed.

Use oral rehydration solution in small, repeated sips, including after vomiting has settled briefly. Continue food that is easy to tolerate, and wash hands carefully after using the toilet and before preparing food. Do not share towels or prepare food for others while unwell if this can be avoided. Avoid self-starting antibiotics or anti-diarrhoeal medicines without clinical advice, since the right choice depends on the illness and the person’s condition.

Seek urgent care for inability to drink, repeated vomiting, fainting, confusion, severe weakness, very little urine, blood in stool or signs of shock. Children, older adults, pregnant people and those with chronic illness need a lower threshold for assessment. Severe fluid loss may require IV Fluid Therapy. Keep oral rehydration going while seeking help if the person is awake and can swallow.

Ask whether the likely source needs reporting, whether a stool test is useful, which fluids to use, and what changes in urine, alertness or stool frequency should prompt reassessment.