 |
|
|
|
|
June 16th, 2008
03:31 PM ET
Cameroon's diseased children
In a small town called Akonolinga, about an hour outside Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon, a strange disease is going around that primarily affects children. It starts as an ulcer on the skin that quickly spreads. Untreated, it can start to affect the bones and eventually even get into the bloodstream. If it gets to that point, there is little that can be done, and the child will often succumb to the disease. They try everything in this small village town to not let it get to that bad. They scrape away the skin, cutting out the diseased areas. They give injections of various medicines, and they keep people in hospitals for months. I met a young boy named Naturale, who had to have his left arm amputated at the shoulder. I almost cried when I met him. By the time he came into see a doctor, the disease was too far gone, his bones literally crumbling. As I visited the clinic, I learned the name of the disease: Buruli. I also learned something that stunned me — what many in this town believe is the origin of Buruli: Witchcraft. It goes like this — as a punishment for taking something or some other trivial thing, these children had been cursed by witches and sorcerers living in the nearby areas. Take someone else’s mango for example, and soon after the child will get an ulcer. In Naturale’s case, he was born out of wedlock, and the witches in the area thought it would be better if he were dead. I was told they cursed him with a particularly severe infection, and he barely survived. Now he stays at the hospital trying to shield himself. Now, if you think what you are reading is too far-fetched, you may be interested to know I sat down with Ph.D-level medical anthropologist, Karen Saylors, who explained all of this to me. Along with researchers associated with Johns Hopkins, she is studying Buruli. Buruli ulcers have been reported in more than 30 countries, according to the World Health Organization. With the increasing geographical spread since 1980, WHO is working to improve surveillance and develop better tools to control the disease. Karen introduced me to traditional healers who knew all about placing a hex on someone and even how to cure the disease with herbs and a piece of bark. While Karen and her colleagues don’t really buy into the idea of witchcraft, they also recognize what a widespread belief it really is here. Instead, Karen has busied herself studying the possibility that Buruli may be spread from animal to human. As it has many similarities to a staph infection, which can cause flesh to be ulcerated and seemlingly “eaten,”, the doctors are using powerful antibiotics with good success. Karen has even studied the particular traditional medicine herbs, which are often effective. What she found was that particular plant had some of the same ingredients found in streptomycin, an antibiotic. As a doctor, it was amazing to see how this disease has been deciphered. It was also a fascinating glimpse into the connection between animals, plants and humans. Not only is the Buruli-causing pathogen most likely from an animal, but the medication used to treat it is from a local plant. And, if we look deep enough, we find this is in fact the case with many diseases. Today, I will be in the wilderness of DRC, specifically a village called Lodja. We will be visiting a monkeypox surveillance clinic. I promise to report back on how the locals here are working to contain the virus so it doesn’t spread around the world. I can’t help be struck by the fact that we are in the middle of a very strong interface between man and animal. It has been here for millions of years, but it is only now that we are starting to understand its awesome culture, power and possible danger. revised 6/19/2008 Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation. soundoff (891 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Next »Leave a Reply to ray ban aviator gold cable
Next entry »Which comes first? Depression or diabetes?
« Previous entrySurviving the bush in Cameroon
|
  About this blog
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love.
 |
|
|
|
By Dr. Sanjay Gupta
http://www.tareth.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=ocrvmotorsports.life
http://monitor.zone-game.info/?url=https://masternearme.com
http://credentialshub.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=ocrv.me/
http://worldwidewinesltd.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=www.ocrvmotorcoaches.com
http://www.1c-hotel.ru/bitrix/redirect.php?event1=partners_out&event2&goto=https://bestlocalnearme.com
I needed to thank you for this very good read!! I absolutely enjoyed every bit of it. I have got you book-marked to check out new things you postÖ
https://dolevka.ru/redirect.asp?BID=2223&url=https://www.bestshopnearme.com
You should be a part of a contest for one of the greatest sites on the internet. I will recommend this blog!
http://petewhite.net/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=ocrvmotorsports.net
http://domains.mobile.bloo.com.au/_/offsite/?id=5539946&url=https://getmoneysocial.com/
Good information. Lucky me I recently found your website by chance (stumbleupon). I've bookmarked it for later!
https://pixel.sitescout.com/iap/ca50fc23ca711ca4?cookieQ=1&r=http://ocrv.me/
Pretty! This was an incredibly wonderful post. Thanks for supplying this information.
http://www.davestrong.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=www.ocrv.biz
vardenafil vs tadalafil https://www.pharmaceptica.com/
http://www.bvaa.org.uk/clickthru.asp?contactid=21551&url=ocrvcenter.com
http://i.mobilerz.net/jump.php?url=https://ocrvcenter.com/
http://click.randyblue.com/hit.php?s=1&p=1&w=103957&t=0&c=0&u=https://ocrvcenter.com
You're so interesting! I don't suppose I've truly read through something like that before. So nice to find someone with genuine thoughts on this issue. Seriously.. thank you for starting this up. This website is one thing that's needed on the internet, someone with a little originality!
http://www.mncppcapps.org/planning/publications/Publication_download.cfm?FilePath=http://ocrvcenter.com/
Next time I read a blog, I hope that it does not disappoint me as much as this one. After all, Yes, it was my choice to read, but I actually believed you would probably have something helpful to talk about. All I hear is a bunch of moaning about something you can fix if you weren't too busy looking for attention.
https://fudou-san.com/link/rank.cgi?mode=link&id=2898&url=www.ocrvcenter.com
http://www.fresheye.com/news_sgt/gravure/bust/?go=www.ocrvcenter.com/
Your style is really unique compared to other people I've read stuff from. Thanks for posting when you've got the opportunity, Guess I will just book mark this site.
https://iaai.com/VehicleInspection/InspectionProvidersUrl?name=AA Transit Pros Inspection Service&url=www.ocrvcenter.com/
https://xyou.com/click.php?aid=88&url=ocrvcenter.com
Hi, I do believe this is a great blog. I stumbledupon it 😉 I'm going to revisit yet again since i have bookmarked it. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue to help others.
/
https://www.luerzersarchive.com/goto/url/carrie.komunitascsd.com/
Having read this I thought it was very informative. I appreciate you spending some time and effort to put this short article together. I once again find myself spending a lot of time both reading and leaving comments. But so what, it was still worthwhile!
https://feedroll.com/rssviewer/feed2js.php?src=http://affordableranking.com
http://www.xiguaji.com/service/link/?url=https://www.dinoautoricambi.it
https://track.effiliation.com/servlet/effi.redir?id_compteur=22157233&effi_id=leparfroid244&url=https://arizonasvision.com
I needed to thank you for this excellent read!! I absolutely loved every bit of it. I have you bookmarked to look at new stuff you postÖ
http://warreztlt.ucoz.ru/go?https://veteranautoglass.com
http://clients3.weblink.com.au/clients/aluminalimited/priceframe1.aspx?link=https://katsfineartstudio.com/
After looking at a few of the articles on your blog, I really like your way of blogging. I saved it to my bookmark site list and will be checking back soon. Take a look at my web site too and tell me what you think.
https://sso.aoa.org/Authenticate.aspx?Return=https://chnyouji.com
I couldnít resist commenting. Well written!
https://www.roughtrade.com/gb/country?redirect=https://pumastorejava.co.id
Hi there! I could have sworn Iíve visited this website before but after going through a few of the articles I realized itís new to me. Nonetheless, Iím definitely pleased I came across it and Iíll be book-marking it and checking back regularly!
https://paper.li/SharonLaMothe/1411841847?read=http://cetacea.com/blog/cetacea-sets-sales-record
Way cool! Some extremely valid points! I appreciate you writing this article plus the rest of the site is also really good.
https://www.kichink.com/home/issafari?uri=https://www.masternearme.com/
An interesting discussion is definitely worth comment. I do believe that you ought to write more about this issue, it might not be a taboo matter but usually folks don't speak about these subjects. To the next! Cheers!!
/
I really love your website.. Excellent colors & theme. Did you make this website yourself? Please reply back as Iím hoping to create my very own site and would love to find out where you got this from or just what the theme is called. Cheers!
http://cta-redirect.ex.co/redirect?&web=https://www.humandesignforeveryone.com/
I really like it whenever people come together and share views. Great site, stick with it!
http://find.cambridgesoft.com/help/cs.html?url=https://www.aybook.ir/
http://marketplace.salisburypost.com/AdHunter/salisburypost/Home/EmailFriend?url=https://backboneleaders.com
https://lnk.bio/go?d=https://backboneleaders.com/
Pretty! This has been an extremely wonderful article. Thanks for supplying this information.
http://www.xiguaji.com/service/link/?url=https://backboneleaders.com
http://ww17.blogpost.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=www.backboneleaders.com/
https://www.banan.cz/goto.php?url=http://backboneleaders.com
The next time I read a blog, I hope that it does not disappoint me just as much as this particular one. I mean, Yes, it was my choice to read, but I actually believed you would have something useful to talk about. All I hear is a bunch of complaining about something that you could fix if you were not too busy looking for attention.
http://dir.dir.bg/url.php?URL=https://www.backbonehunters.com/
https://www.priyo.com/feed/redirection?url=https://backboneleaders.com
http://cl.angel.wwx.tw/debug/frm-s/backboneleaders.com/
The next time I read a blog, Hopefully it won't disappoint me just as much as this one. I mean, Yes, it was my choice to read through, nonetheless I actually thought you'd have something interesting to say. All I hear is a bunch of moaning about something you can fix if you weren't too busy seeking attention.
http://morimo.info/o.php?url=https://www.backbonehunters.com
http://r.turn.com/r/click?id=f6wz9fvWpSEJ7QEA4QUBAA&url=http://www.backbonehunters.com/
http://clickatellsucks.net/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=commercialvanrepairshop.com
Everything is very open with a precise clarification of the issues. It was definitely informative. Your site is useful. Thank you for sharing!
http://www.xjjgsc.com/Redirect.aspx?url=http://ocrvmotorsports.life
An impressive share! I've just forwarded this onto a colleague who has been doing a little homework on this. And he actually bought me lunch due to the fact that I stumbled upon it for him... lol. So allow me to reword this.... Thank YOU for the meal!! But yeah, thanx for spending time to talk about this subject here on your site.
http://elliottlong.com/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=ocrv.life/
http://www.kanam.info/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=boxtruckrepairshop.com
http://icyfeet.info/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=fleetservicesocrv.com
Pretty! This has been a really wonderful post. Many thanks for providing this info.
http://pearleselector.biz/__media__/js/netsoltrademark.php?d=ocrvcenter.org
Oh my goodness! Amazing article dude! Thank you, However I am experiencing difficulties with your RSS. I donít know the reason why I am unable to subscribe to it. Is there anyone else getting identical RSS issues? Anyone who knows the answer will you kindly respond? Thanks!!
https://www.hv.se/find_v2/_click?_t_id=1B2M2Y8AsgTpgAmY7PhCfg==&_t_q=högskoleprovet+2017&_t_tags=language:sv,siteid:a8188405-4b46-49f5-a8fe-0a51e8cf5571&_t_ip=193.10.205.130&_t_hit.id=studera_nu_Models_Pages_StandardPage/_c8e4784b-c1ba-4736-a0d3-55fea59f78a1_sv&_t_hit.pos=9&_t_redirect=https://www.ocrvcenter.com