Vibrio cholerae O139 Bengal: A descriptive study

A prospective study was conducted to determine the clinical and laboratory characteristics and the clinical course of cholera due to Vibrio cholerae O 139 Bengal. The study subjects included 22 adult males with stool culture-p roven V; cholerae O139, On enrollment, mean +/-SD concentrations (mmol/L) o f serum sodium, potassium, chloride, and bicarbonate were 134+/-3, 4+/-1, 1 02+/-4, and 13+/-4 respectively, and stool sodium, potassium, chloride, and bicarbonate concentrations were 120+/-24, 18+/-6, 93+/-16, and 37+/-9 resp ectively. Seventeen patients (7.8%) had faecal leukocytes ranging from 11 t o 50 per high-power field. All V. cholerae O139 isolates (100%) were suscep tible to tetracycline, erythromycin, and ciprofloxacin, 92% to furazolidine , and only 5% to trimethoprim-sulphamethaxazole. The median (interquartile) volume of liquid stool during the first 24 hours was 9 (5-12) litre. The m edian (interquartile) volume of liquid stool and the amounts of intravenous and oral rehydration fluids required during the entire study period were 1 6 (9-24) litre, 9 (6-18) litre, and 14 (9-20)litre respectively. The median (interquartile) duration of diarrhoea was 80 (48-104) hours. The median (i nterquartile) duration of excretion of V. cholerae O139 in stool was 5 (3-6 ) days. Clinical acid laboratory features, and case management of cholera d ue to V. cholerae O139 are very similar to conventional cholera due to V. c holerae O1.