Cholera and Other Vibrio Illness Surveillance (COVIS)

The Cholera and Other Vibrio Illness Surveillance (COVIS) system is used for reporting human infections with pathogenic species of the family Vibrionaceae, which cause vibriosis and cholera. CDC maintains this surveillance system.

CDC initiated COVIS in collaboration with the Food and Drug Administration and four Gulf Coast states (Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas) in 1989. Health officials report cases of vibriosis and cholera using the COVIS report form [PDF – 7 pages], which captures information about the vibriosis illness and any underlying illness; history of recent seafood consumption; history of recent exposure to bodies of water, raw or live seafood or their drippings, or marine life; and trace back information on implicated seafood.

Information from COVIS helps track Vibrio infections and determine host, food, and environmental risk factors for these infections.