Central Darfur children stricken by mystery disease

A mysterious disease is afflicting children under 12, as well as donkeys in Deleig camp for the displaced in Wadi Salih locality, Central Darfur. One of the camp sheikhs told Radio Dabanga that about 75 percent of the children in the camp have been infected with the disease. The symptoms are coughing, vomiting, inflammation in the genitals and sleeplessness. The sheikh said that the disease has spread over the past two weeks. The camp’s health centre has nine rooms that can accommodate 20 children, but there are 100 or more cases. He said that there have been no fatalities thus far. The administration of the health centre has distributed white syrup and painkillers without explaining the reason of the disease’s outbreak or how to prevent it. The Sheikh called on the authorities and organisations working in the field of health care to urgently access the area to contain and identify the disease. File photo: A displaced mother and her child (Nic Bothma / Corbis) Related: Darfur pupils’ mystery disease ‘hysteria’: Sudanese Health Ministry (9 February 2014)North Darfur ‘mystery disease’ diagnosed as paralysis (4 February 2014)’Mystery disease’ strikes North Darfur school children (2 February 2014)Unknown disease among North Darfur school students (26 January 2014)