Africa: Increase in visceral leishmaniasis cases reported in Chad

By NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) is endemic in some areas of Chad.

Sporadic cases of leishmaniasis have been reported in Chad since 2018. Since 1 January 2018 to 31 May 2021, a total 122 cases of VL and six fatalities have been reported by three provinces of N’Djamena, Borkou and Tibesti.

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), also known as kala-azar, or black fever, is the most serious form of leishmaniasis. It is a disease caused by a parasite of the genus Leishmania. Among parasites,
it is the second biggest killer in the world after malaria. Each (Plasmodium and Leishmania) is responsible for an estimated half a million deaths worldwide each year

The current increase of cases draws much attention, and appropriate public health actions have been undertaken to include strengthening of surveillance, a laboratory system has been put in place and testing all suspected cases.

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