CAIRO: Since last Friday, the Egyptian Ministry of Health detected an increase in the number of cases of typhoid which have reach 60 from 34 last Tuesday. On Tuesday the Ministry of Health announced 34 confirmed cases of typhoid fever in two villages in Qaliubiya. The new ensuing 26 cases were from same villages. According to the Ministry's official press statement, 45 out of the 60 have fully recovered. However, Mamdouh Khalef deputy health minister in Qaliubiya told the press on Saturday, that he expects an increase in the number of cases with an average five to seven new cases per day for a week before the disease disappears altogether from the two villages. The patients are thought to have caught the disease as a result of drinking unclean water which led the governorate to cut off the water supply from both villages. Currently the two villages are receiving water from alternative sources not from the villages' main water pipes. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), typhoid is a bacterial disease that is transmitted through consuming unclean food or drinks. Its symptoms are similar to that of a severe flu, including high fever, sweating, headache and diarrhea and in some occasions, pink spots may appear on the chest.
