cholera

(noun)

Any of several acute infectious diseases of humans and domestic animals, caused by the Vibrio cholerae bacterium through ingestion of contaminated water or food, usually marked by severe gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, and dehydration.

Related Terms

Examples of cholera in the following topics:

  • Industrialization and the Environment

    • Unsanitary conditions and overcrowding afflicted many American cities, where outbreaks of disease, including cholera and typhoid, were common.
    • The cholera outbreak of 1832 was related to overcrowding and unsanitary conditions that attended the Industrial Revolution.

  • The Rise of the City

    • As a result of unsanitary living conditions, diseases such as cholera, dysentery, and typhoid fever struck urban areas with increasing frequency.

  • Disease in the New World

    • One of the most devastating diseases was smallpox; other deadly diseases included typhus, measles, influenza, bubonic plague, cholera, malaria, mumps, yellow fever, and pertussis (whooping cough).

  • The Environmental Impact of Cities

    • Diseases like cholera, dysentery, and typhoid fever struck urban areas with increasing frequency as a result of unsanitary living conditions.

  • The Beginnings of the Labor Movement

    • Skidmore died in 1832 when a cholera epidemic swept New York City, but the state of New York did away with imprisonment for debt in the same year.

  • The Growth of Cities

    • Overcrowding and unsanitary conditions in New York City contributed to an increase in disease, and cholera and yellow fever ravaged the city.