Cholera epidemics still rage in Sudan, Angola -WHO

GENEVA, June 22 (Reuters) Cholera epidemics continue to claim lives in Angola and Sudan, where the known death tolls this year have risen to nearly 1,900 and 553, respectively, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said today.

In Sudan, where the acute watery diarrhoea disease has broken out in the north including Khartoum state and parts of Darfur, more than 2,000 cases have been reported in the last two months, including 77 fatalities, the United Nations agency said.

In southern Sudan, where cholera has been raging since January, a total of 16,187 cases including 476 deaths have been recorded, it said in a statement.

In Angola, a total of 46,758 cases including 1,893 deaths have been reported since mid-February. Half of the cases have been in the capital Luanda, on the Atlantic coast.

Although current trends showed a decline in most of the 14 of 18 provinces affected, about 125 cases were still being reported each day in the southern African country, according to the WHO.

Angola's 27-year civil war, which ended in 2002, devastated Angola's sanitation and water systems.

Cholera, an acute intestinal infection spread by contaminated water or food, causes vomiting and acute diarrhoea that can lead to dehydration and death within 24 hours. It can be treated easily with antibiotics and rehydration salts.

The Geneva-based WHO is helping health authorities in both African countries to combat the epidemics.

REUTERS PR KP1430