African Sleeping Disease

"African sleeping sickness is an often fatal, endemic infectious disease of humans and animals in tropical Africa, caused by either of two trypanosanes transmitted by the tsetse fly and characterized by fever, severe headaches, and lymph nodes swelling in early stages, followed by extreme weakness, sleepiness, and deep coma" (Answers.com) There are two types of the disease that occurs in different regions in Africa. the first is the Rodesian form, here the parasite enters the lymph nodes and spleen. Soon after the infected has symptoms such as an irregular fever and delayed pain sensation. "The patient soon dies of massive toxemia" (Answers.com) The Gambian type is the parasite that attacks the brain and spinal cord. This is what causes symptoms such as severe headaches, mental and physical fatigue and sleepiness. After about 3 years of so, the suffering ends and the infected first experiences a deep coma...then death. It is believed that 50 to 70 thousand people are currently infected.

Work Cited

 http://www.answers.com/topic/sleeping-sickness