Determinants of cholera fatalities in Malawi: A case-control study of patient-level and clinical management factors in the 2022-23 outbreak

Overview:
This dataset supports the study titled "Determinants of cholera fatalities in Malawi: A case-control study of patient-level and clinical management factors in the 2022–23 outbreak." The study aimed to identify clinical and behavioural factors associated with cholera-related deaths during Malawi’s largest and deadliest outbreak to date, which began in March 2022. Using a matched case-control design, the dataset captures detailed information across treatment units in four Malawian districts.

Data Collection Period:
-March 2022 – September 2023 (retrospective review conducted August 21 – September 1, 2023)

Study Sites:
-Blantyre District Health Office
-Lilongwe District Health Office
-Mangochi District Health Office
-Nkhatabay District Health Office

Data Type:
-Retrospective clinical and demographic data (anonymised)

Number of Observations:
-241 patient records, each with 32 variables, prior to in silico matching and data cleaning.

Matching Variables:
-Age (in age ranges)
-District of diagnosis

Key Variables:
-Demographics: age, sex, occupation, marital status, residential location
-Health-Seeking Behaviour: time to hospital presentation, vaccination status
-Clinical Characteristics: hydration status, comorbidities (e.g., HIV status)
-Treatment Details: IV fluid administration, adequacy of fluid management (coded against WHO guidelines), antibiotic use, time in ward
-Outcome: mortality (case = 1; control = 0)

File Format:
-CSV (.csv): (fully anonymised)