Health is wealth
River Blindness
July 23rd 2011 03:28
River blindness is a debilitating disease caused by a parasitic worm, and is the second leading cause of infectious blindness in the world. Infections are spread by a blackfly that lives near running water. It is also called onchocerciasis, because the worm that causes the disease is Onchocerca volvulus. There is no vaccine or preventative drug for river blindness. Infected individuals may have eye lesions, a skin rash, and possibly bumps under the skin. In the most serious cases, the eye lesions lead to blindness. Prevention efforts have included spraying fast-flowing rivers with insecticides that target the fly larvae.
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