Horror disease hits Uganda

[October 22, 2010]  KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) -- A disease whose progression and symptoms seem straight out of a horror movie but which can be easily treated has killed at least 20 Ugandans and sickened more than 20,000 in just two months.

Jiggers, small insects which look like fleas, are the culprits in the epidemic which causes parts of the body to rot. They often enter bodies through the feet. Once inside, they suck blood, grow and breed, multiplying by the thousands and making infested body parts -- buttocks, lips, even eye lids -- rot away.

James Kakooza Uganda's minister of state for primary health care, said jiggers can easily kill young children by sucking their blood and can cause early deaths in grown-ups who have other diseases.

[Associated Press]

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