Cholera gravis associated with acute renal failure in a traveler from Haiti to the United States

Abstract

Cholera is a gastroenteric disease caused by epidemic or pandemic Vibrio cholerae which still is responsible for over 100,000 annual deaths worldwide. Since October 2010, Haiti experienced a cholera outbreak affecting more than 300,000 persons. Few imported cases related to the Haitian epidemic have been reported so far in the United States and Canada. We presented a patient who developed cholera gravis soon after arrival at New York City from Haiti. The patient needed admission to an Intensive Care Unit, for vigorous intravenous hydration, antibiotic therapy, and hemodialysis due to refractory oliguric renal failure. The patient was discharged the day 6 after admission and V. cholerae O1 was isolated from the stool culture. Cholera can be a life-threatening disease; early recognition based on travel history and clinical features is the corner stone for successful management.