Juta Varjas, service manager of the Estonian Health Board's infectious diseases epidemiology department of the Health Board, explained that the suspicion had been based on the patient's medical history, travel history and preliminary results from the hospital laboratory tests, which showed, among other things, the presence of vibrio cholerae.

"For certain diseases, such as cholera, the final diagnosis needs to be confirmed by a reference laboratory," Varjas explained. In this case, laboratory results confirmed that the illness was not caused by cholera.

According to Varjas, the infection was probably linked to the consumption of poor quality drinking water while abroad.

The Health Board reminds people traveling abroad to familiarize themselves with the health risks and vaccination recommendations in the countries they are visiting.

Cholera is a dangerous infectious disease with an incubation period of one to five day, and while around 70 percent of infected individuals are either asymptomatic or experience very minor symptoms, much hinges on whether a toxic variant is present.

More serious symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting, and fluid loss, and also muscle weakness and heart rhythm disturbances.

The most recent case of cholera recorded in Estonia was in 1993.

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