WANTED : african sleeping disease
by maci scates
description:
- sleeping sickness occurs in 36 African countries where there are tsetse flies present.
- tsetse flies carry the virus and release it into the human body by biting them
- result of the bite is becoming very sleepy
- The disease develops in areas ranging from a single village to an entire region. Within an infected area, the intensity of the disease can vary from one village to the next.
How does somebody get African sleeping disorder?
- A person gets West African trypanosomiasis through the bite of an infected tsetse fly. Occasionally a pregnant woman may pass the infection to her baby. In theory, the infection can be transmitted through a blood transfusion, but such cases rarely have been documented.
* this sickness can occur in people and animals *
symptoms of african sleeping sickness
General symptoms include:
- Anxiety- becoming nervous
- Drowsiness during the day- includes dizziness and becoming very sleepy
- Fever- being very hot
- Headache
- Insomnia at night- sleep disorder
- Mood changes- dramatic behavior changes
- Sleepiness (may be uncontrollable)
- Sweating
- Swollen lymph nodes all over the body
- Swollen, red, painful nodule at site of fly bite-
- Weakness- not being able to walk for long periods of time, or focus for very long
where is human african trypanosomiasis found?
The most common places that East African trypanosomiasis is found are in parts of Eastern and Central Africa, including Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Ethiopia, Zaire, Zimbabwe, and Botswana
Treatment...
some treatment for stage one would be :
- Pentamidine: , . gambiense sleeping sickness. Despite non-negligible undesirable effects, it is in general well tolerated by patients.
- Suramin: . rhodesiense. It provokes certain undesirable effects, in the urinary tract and allergic reactions.
- Melarsoprol: it is used in both forms of infection. It is derived from arsenic and has many undesirable side effects. . An increase in resistance to the drug has been observed in several foci particularly in central Africa.
- Eflornithine: this molecule, less toxic than melarsoprol,. It is only effective against T.b. gambiense. The regimen is strict and difficult to apply.
How serious is this disorder?
Who does it victomize? also (trannsmission)
Trypanosoma brucei gambiense- A person can be infected for months or years without showing major signs or symptoms of the disease. When symptoms develop, the patient is often already in an advanced disease stage where the central nervous system is affected.
and
Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense- some of the First signs and symptoms are observed within a few months or weeks after infection. The disease develops fastly and invades the central nervous system.
FUNFACTS
- each day without treatment will increase thrive for sleep as well as many other symptoms.
- the tsetse fly, were discovered in 1903.
- African sleeping sickness slowly damages the brain, that is why it can become fatal
- after a while of having the disease you have a very high chance of going into a coma