Amid a cholera outbreak in Helmand and Zabul provinces, Uzbekistan has tightened its health controls at border crossing with Afghanistan.

Afghan Voice Agency (AVA)_Monitoring, According to Uzbek media reports, Uzbekistan’s Service for Sanitary and Epidemiological Welfare and Public Health has set up 54 sanitary and quarantine points at border crossings around the country.

These health check points have thermal imagers and non-contact thermometers for medical and sanitary examination of those arriving in Uzbekistan.

Kun.uz reported that patients in the country with acute diarrhea were tested for cholera and that water samples are being taken from open reservoirs to identify cholera pathogens.

A reserve of medical places has been created to receive patients and a supply of necessary medicines has been formed.

This comes after health officials reported last week that at least 20 people had died from the bacterial disease and 180 were being treated at the Mirwais Hospital in Kandahar province alone. 

Ministry of Public Health officials said that the cholera outbreak has been reported in Baghran and Shah Wali Kot districts and has been attributed to the lack of clean water and eating contaminated food.