Violence from the Boko Haram crisis has disrupted health and sanitation systems and left 1.7 million people displaced in the north-eastern states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe in Nigeria. Many are living in camps or host communities. In August, a cholera outbreak took hold in Borno, further threatening communities already upended by the humanitarian crisis, the UNFPA said in a stateemnt on Monday, September 25.

The disease, which causes dangerous levels of dehydration, has put women – especially pregnant women – at particular risk.

“Cholera puts an enormous extra stress on the body of the pregnant woman and on the unborn baby,” said Dr. Homsuk Swomen, a UNFPA reproductive health specialist in Maiduguri.

“Studies show that cholera infections during pregnancy can lead to sudden loss of the fetus, premature delivery, stillbirth and an increased mortality and morbidity, both for the baby and the mother.”

And due to the ongoing conflict, many pregnant women are malnourished, aggravating their vulnerability to cholera and the consequences if they fall sick.

3,346 suspected cholera patients have been reported since outbreak was first identified in Maiduguri a month ago. Fifty-three cholera deaths have been registered since.