European Cholera Cases 1970-2011

Background Information

Cholera is a bacterial infection of  the small intestine with symptoms including diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs through ingesting contaminated food and water.  The greatest risk from Cholera is dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, sometimes requiring hospitalization. Cholera poses a major threat to developing nations where there is a lack of water sanitation and doctors. In serious cases, Cholera is fatal, killing by dehydrating its host.  This analysis examines European Cholera cases from 1970 to 2011.

Data Sets

• Cholera Continent Data: World Health Organization
• European Country Boundaries: Global Administrative Areas  (GADM)

Methodology

Cholera data downloaded from the World Health Organization had to be formatted in Microsoft Excel before it could be manipulated in ArcGIS 10.1. The data was separated into two files: number of Cholera cases and number of deaths.  Once formatted, the Excel files were then uploaded into ArcGIS and joined to the country boundaries shapefile downloaded from GADM for mapping.

Conclusions

In Excel Cholera cases in Europe were plotted as a function of time, then compared the total number of cases to the total number of deaths.  Plotting the Cholera cases over time revealed two significant spikes in  cases.  For mapping purposes I compared the most recent 2011 data to the outbreaks in 1974 and 1994.

The 1974 peak primarily affected Western Europe, with Portugal having the maximum number of  Cholera cases.  In 1994, the total number of cases exceeded those in 1974, affecting Eastern Europe, primarily Russia and the Ukraine.  In Excel Cholera cases in Europe were again plotted as a function of time, then compared the total number of cases to the total number of deaths.  The average distribution of Cholera cases reveal high outbreaks in far western and eastern Europe.

Map Links

ESRI Story Map: http://www.arcgis.com/apps/StorytellingTextLegend/index.html?appid=2ae11efa9aa34ab5a84503f6757b88bb