World Health Day : Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis):

Saturday, July 12, 2025

World Health Day

Malaria

Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by parasitic protozoans of the genus Plasmodium. The disease is transmitted by a bite from an infected female Anopheles mosquito, which introduces the organisms from its saliva into a person`s circulatory system. Symptoms include flu, such as a high fever, chills, and muscle pain.Some types of malaria may cause more serious problems, such as damage to the heart, lungs, kidneys, or brain. These types can be deadly.

Japanese encephalitis

Japanese encephalitis is a disease caused by the mosquito-borne Japanese encephalitis virus. Initial symptoms include: Fever, headache and malaise which may last for a period of between 1 and 6 days. Signs which develop during the acute encephalitic stage include neck rigidity, cachexia, hemiparesis, convulsions and a raised body temperature between 38–41 °C There is no cure for the disease. Treatment is focused on relieving severe clinical signs and supporting the patient to overcome the infection.

Human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness)

Human African trypanosomiasis, also known as sleeping sickness, is a vector-borne parasitic disease. It is caused by infection with protozoan parasites belonging to the genus Trypanosoma. They are transmitted to humans by tsetse fly (Glossina genus) bites. Symptoms of the disease are changes of behaviour, confusion, sensory disturbances and poor coordination and mainly disturbance of the sleep cycle. Treatment is easier when the disease is detected early and before neurological symptoms occur. Treatment of the first stage is with the medications pentamidine or suramin. Treatment of the second stage involves: eflornithine or a combination of nifurtimox and eflornithine for T.b.g.

Dengue

Dengue fever is a disease caused by a family of viruses that are transmitted by mosquitoes. Symptom include severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pains, nausea, vomiting, swollen glands or rash. There is no specific treatment for dengue fever and currently no vaccine for dengue fever.

Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever

Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick-borne viral disease, a zoonosis of domestic animals and wild animals, that may affect humans. CCHF virus causes severe viral haemorrhagic fever outbreaks, with a case fatality rate of 10–40%. Symptoms are fever, myalgia, (muscle ache), dizziness, neck pain and stiffness, backache, headache, sore eyes and photophobia (sensitivity to light). There may be nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and sore throat early on, followed by sharp mood swings and confusion. The antiviral drug ribavirin is used to treat CCHF infection.

Chikungunya

Chikungunya is a viral disease spread by the bite of infected Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes. Its symptoms include a fever up to 40 °C , a petechial or maculopapular rash of the trunk and occasionally the limbs, and arthralgia or arthritis affecting multiple joints.[ There is no cure for the disease. It is a self-limiting infection and most patients recover fully. No deaths, neuro-invasive cases or hemorrhagic cases related to chikungunya infection have been conclusively documented.

Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis):

Chagas disease is a tropical parasitic disease caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi and spread mostly by insects known as Triatominae or kissing bugs. Symptoms include: fever, swollen lymph nodes, headaches, or local swelling at the site of the bite. Diagnosis of early disease is by finding the parasite in the blood using a microscope. Chronic disease is diagnosed by finding antibodies for T. cruzi in the blood. Prevention mostly involves eliminating kissing bugs and avoiding their bites.Other preventative efforts include screening blood used for transfusions.