Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Labasa illness 'not typhoid'

Updated at 9:56 pm on 23 March 2010

Fiji's health ministry says a group of sick people in the town of Labasa in Vanua Levu are not suffering from typhoid.

The aid agency UNICEF said on Monday its staff had discovered 16 people in one village with bloody diarrhoea, and were concerned it could be typhoid.

Fiji is experiencing a typhoid outbreak, with 114 confirmed cases, and health officials are worried about its possible further spread following Cyclone Tomas.

Public health deputy secretary Jo Koroivueta says eight people cases were reported at Labasa and only one admitted to hospital.

He says from the clinical symptoms it is very unlikely to be typhoid, although the cause has yet to be identified.

Patients have been managed with antibiotics and rehydration.

Mr Koroivueta says the Health Ministry has not been notified of any more typhoid cases, but this could be due to poor communication, following Cyclone Tomas.

He says health teams are in the affected areas, but some of them have been unable to provide feedback.

Officials are also concerned about other water-borne illnesses, such as leptospirosis and dengue.

The public health deputy secretary, Jo Koroivueta, says health teams are in the affected areas, but some of them have been unable to provide feedback.

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