• Eelco Boonstra.
• Askvoll legesenter 6980 Askvoll. eelco_boonstra@hotmail.com
• Tidsskr. Nor. Laegeforen. 2002 Jan 10; 122 (1): 35-7.

AbstractAfrican sleeping sickness is no longer a rare disease among tourists visiting national parks in Tanzania. The disease is caused by a parasite, Trypanosoma brucei, which is transmitted by the tsetse fly. Two species infect humans: Trypanosoma brucci gambiense and Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense; the last form is re-emerging in parts of Africa. Untreated this disease carries a mortality of nearly 100%. This article describes a case of African sleeping sickness in a tourist visiting Tanzania, which was diagnosed at the Nordic Clinic, Dar es Salaam. The most important symptoms, diagnostic investigations as well as the main principles of treatment are described. Patients with this condition need to be admitted and treated at centres with competence in tropical diseases. African sleeping sickness should be kept in mind in tourists returning to their home country with fever after visits to national parks in Eastern Africa. With early treatment, cure is almost certain. The only way to prevent this condition is through protection against bites of the tsetse fly.

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