Australia is battling its biggest gastrointestinal outbreak in more than 20 years, with an alarming number of young children falling ill.
Cases of cryptosporidiosis, a parasitic gastrointestinal disease, have skyrocketed, with the number of people falling ill four times higher than in the entire year of 2023.
Children under four years of age account for a quarter of the recorded cases.
The tiny parasites are found in the feces of pets, farm animals and humans.
The disease is spread in a variety of ways, including contact with someone infected and drinking unpasteurized milk or dairy products.
People can also contract the disease by swimming in contaminated water and should be aware that chlorine does not kill the parasite’s eggs.
The disease can cause diarrhea, fever, nausea and vomiting; some people take weeks to recover.
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Queensland vice president Dr Aileen Traves said doctors have noticed an increase in infection rates, particularly among children.
Australia is battling its biggest gastrointestinal outbreak in more than 20 years, with an alarming number of young children falling ill
“It’s difficult because there’s no treatment other than resting and staying hydrated. The main thing we need people to do is prevent the spread,” he told the BBC. The Sydney Morning Herald.
Some 11,747 cases of cryptosporidiosis have been recorded, compared to 3,716 in 2023.
The number of cases is the highest since the National Surveillance System for Notifiable Diseases began in 2001.
Queensland is the state hardest hit by the outbreak, with nearly half of all Australian cases in the Sunshine State.
The higher rates have been attributed to the fact that more people are swimming in the state’s warmer climate.
Dr Traves said people on holiday were more likely to continue swimming on holiday once their symptoms had cleared, but infected people should wait 14 days to stop the spread of infection.
“It’s not an isolated case, and because people travel, an outbreak somewhere can spread very effectively,” he said.
The illness can cause diarrhea, fever, nausea and vomiting, and it may take weeks for people to get better.
Vincent Ho, an academic clinical gastroenterologist at Western Sydney University, said that while outbreaks do occur occasionally, there will be fewer cases in winter.
“We expect the numbers to go down assuming there is no vector of spread,” he said.
Mr Ho said weather events such as large storms and floods spread the parasite, but droughts can also contribute to infection rates by increasing the concentration of the disease in rivers and dams.
Cases of gastrointestinal illnesses caused by bacteria such as salmonella, shigella and campylobacter have also increased.
In the first six months of 2024 there were almost 41,500, a worrying figure if we take into account that in all of 2023 there were 61,320.
To avoid gastroduodenal illnesses, residents are advised to wash their hands thoroughly, especially after touching animals, avoid drinking unfiltered water and not swim after a heavy downpour.