Which comma-shaped bacterium did Robert Koch identify as a plague agent in 1883?
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Vibrio cholerae
It colonises the small intestine and releases a toxin.
💡 Did you know? Robert Koch described it more precisely in 1884.
All questions with answers
How is cholera mainly transmitted?
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Contaminated drinking water
Contaminated food also transmits it.
💡 Did you know? Clean sewage systems are the best protection.
Which main symptom marks cholera?
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Watery diarrhoea
It looks like „rice water“.
💡 Did you know? The body loses enormous amounts of fluid.
What do cholera patients mostly die of?
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Dehydration
The massive fluid loss makes the circulation fail.
💡 Did you know? Untreated this can be fatal within hours.
Which simple treatment saves the most lives?
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Oral rehydration
A solution of water, salt and sugar.
💡 Did you know? It is seen as one of medicine's most important inventions.
Which London doctor proved a contaminated pump as the source in 1854?
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John Snow
He had the handle of the Broad Street pump removed.
💡 Did you know? He is seen as a founder of modern epidemiology.
Who conclusively identified the cholera pathogen?
Show answer
Robert Koch
The German bacteriologist found it in India in 1884.
💡 Did you know? Koch decisively shaped modern microbiology.
In which world region did cholera originate?
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The Ganges delta (India)
From there it broke out worldwide in the 19th century.
💡 Did you know? Seven great cholera pandemics are known.
Which false idea long explained diseases like cholera?
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The miasma theory
People believed „bad air“ caused illness.
💡 Did you know? John Snow's work disproved this idea.
Which infrastructure best protects a city from cholera?
Show answer
A working sewage system
Separating drinking and waste water is decisive.
💡 Did you know? Building modern sewers ended many outbreaks.
Does cholera still break out today?
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Yes
Especially after disasters and in war zones.
💡 Did you know? Mostly where clean water is lacking.
What skin colour do severe cholera patients often take on?
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Bluish
That is why it was once called „blue cholera“.
💡 Did you know? The cause is extreme fluid loss.
Is there a vaccine against cholera?
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Yes
Oral vaccines offer temporary protection.
💡 Did you know? Clean water still remains the key measure.
Which famous composer probably died of cholera in 1893?
Show answer
Pyotr Tchaikovsky
He is said to have drunk unboiled water.
💡 Did you know? The circumstances of his death are still disputed.
Which field grew largely out of cholera research?
Show answer
Epidemiology
It studies how diseases spread.
💡 Did you know? John Snow's map of deaths was its first tool.
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