Sleeping Sickness or Human African trypanosomiasis – UPSC Prelims

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  • Sleeping Sickness or Human African trypanosomiasis: It is a vector-borne parasitic disease.
  • Caused by: It is caused by infection with protozoan parasites belonging to the genus Trypanosoma.
  • Transmission: They are transmitted to humans by tsetse fly (Glossina genus) bites which have acquired their infection from human beings or from animals harbouring human pathogenic parasites.
  • Endemic: The disease is currently found in 36 sub-Saharan African countries. According to WHO, If untreated, the disease can become fatal.
  • Why in News? The World Health Organization(WHO) has declared that Togo has become the first country in Africa to eliminate human African Trypanosomiasis or sleeping sickness.
Additional Facts:
  • Togo: It is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. The country extends south to the Gulf of Guinea where its capital Lomé is located.
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