Regarding the Balkan war definite information is still wanting. Well known, however, is the outbreak of cholera along the Tchatalja lines; but the progress of the disease was soon checked and it did not become very widespread. It first appeared in the camp of the Turks, whither it was borne by troops from Asia, where severe epidemics of it had occurred in Mecca and Tiberias, and where it had made its appearance in several other places. In Constantinople the first case of the disease was reported on November 5, 1912; in the first week of December it had reached its climax, and after January 20 only sporadic cases were observed. The following table indicates the number of persons who contracted and succumbed to cholera in Constantinople:
| Patients. | Deaths. | |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 5–Dec. 2 (1912) | 934 | 441 |
| Dec. 3–Dec. 9 (1912) | 540 | 229 |
| Dec. 10–Dec. 16 (1912) | 451 | 244 |
| Dec. 17–Dec. 23 (1912) | 276 | 158 |
| Dec. 24–Dec. 30 (1912) | 141 | 74 |
| Dec. 31–Feb. 1 (1913) | 173 | 99 |
| Nov. 5, 1912–Feb. 1, 1913 | 2,515 | 1,245 |
Among the Bulgarians cholera did not become very widespread; throughout the entire territory occupied by the Bulgarians, cases of cholera, to be sure, were observed, particularly along the Tchatalja lines. But the Bulgarians fought the pestilence with energetic measures; the troops were given nothing but boiled water, and careful attention was paid to what they ate; the railway dépôts were thoroughly disinfected, as were all places in which large numbers of people congregated. During the armistice the Bulgarians were forbidden all intercourse with the Turks. For the troops transported back home quarantine stations were established. The result of all these precautionary measures was eminently successful. In Bulgaria itself only sporadic outbreaks of cholera occurred, as in Sofia, Stara Zagara, and in the district of Shumla;[323] on January 18, 1913, Bulgaria was entirely free from cholera.
Typhus fever broke out very frequently in all the armies, but detailed information regarding its prevalence has not been published. According to the reports which have thus far been issued, the disease did not appear in the form of epidemics in any of the armies; on the other hand, it is stated that it broke out among the Turkish prisoners in Bulgaria and Servia, as in Tatar-Bazarjik, Ligotin, Zajecar, and Kujazevas.