The bacteria multiply in the intestinal tract, and are passed out of the body through the stool. Spread of cholera can be rapid in areas where there is inadequate treatment of sewage and drinking water. A few persons in the United States have become ill with cholera after eating raw or undercooked shellfish harvested from the Gulf of Mexico. However, generally the risk of becoming ill with cholera is quite low in the United States. A person may have no symptoms, or may have mild to severe diarrhea, vomiting and dehydration.
Fever is usually absent.
Approximately one in 20 infected persons has severe disease characterized by profuse watery diarrhea, vomiting and leg cramps. In these persons, rapid loss of body fluids can lead to dehydration and shock. Without immediate hospitalization and restoration of the body fluids, death can occur within hours. An individual infected with cholera may experience symptoms from 5 hours to 5 days after swallowing food or water contaminated with the cholera bacteria. However, symptoms usually appear within 2 to 3 days.