§ The Earl of Sandwichasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many cases of typhoid have been confirmed in (a) Baghdad, and (b) the rest of Iraq since April 2003; what are the primary causes of infection; and what action they have taken through the Iraqi Government and other channels to prevent typhoid. [HL684]
§ Baroness AmosIn theHealth in Iraq report of September 2004, the Iraqi Ministry of Health stated that typhoid had increased since the mid-1990s because of poor sanitation and water supplies. It reported 29,000 cases of typhoid in 2003 and 5,460 in the first quarter of 2004. DfID is not aware of any recent and reliable data that show the trend of infectious diseases, including typhoid. The Ministry of Health report also states that there is no evidence of any epidemics since the end of the conflict, despite the disruption of services and interruption in programmes of immunisation. Efforts are currently being made to increase immunisation levels to halt the rise in vaccine preventable diseases, with World Health Organisation (WHO) support.