SUDAN: Thousands threatened by kala-azar epidemic in south

NAIROBI, 22 December 2003 (IRIN) - There is growing evidence that kala-azar, a deadly parasitic disease transmitted by the bite of the sand fly, is spreading at alarming rate in southern Sudan threatening thousands of already-vulnerable people, the NGO Medecins Sans Frontieres warned on Monday. In a statement, it said it had noted a rapid increase in the number of people suffering from the deadly parasitic disease in Latjor, a state in the Upper Nile of region of south Sudan, suggesting a new epidemic in the region. The medical relief agency said that within a week of setting up a clinic in the small town of Bimbim, it had admitted 150 kala-azar patients. "Twenty more arrive every day," the statement said. "Most of the people reported that they had already lost at least one family member to the disease." Kees Keus, MSF's health advisor for Sudan, said this pattern pointed to a new epidemic among a population which had acquired little resistance to the disease. "The fact that all age groups and both sexes are affected, and that these people have not travelled in from elsewhere, indicates an epidemic outbreak," Keus noted. Similar alarming reports had also been noted in nearby Kechkoun, where 145 patients were under treatment. Unconfirmed reports also indicated that there could even be more cases in the much larger town of Nassir, which is some 12 hours walk from Bimbim, MSF said. "We know from our experience in other places how devastating this can be. It is vital that we quickly discover the extent of the problem in this area," Keus stressed. MSF has called for a "concerted response" to what it said appeared to be "a very threatening outbreak". "There are very few medical facilities in Latjor state and the Upper Nile region has suffered from high rates of malnutrition throughout the year," the statement noted.