Download Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs)

Factsheet
Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs)
What are Neglected Tropical Diseases?
• NTDs comprise several diseases and the symptoms vary dramatically from disease to
disease, ranging from extreme pain to permanent disability to death. 1
• Specific NTDs:
o
Leishmaniasis: A parasitic disease transmitted by infected sand flies, it can cause skin
ulcers or lesions and swelling of the spleen and liver
o
Human African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness): Caused by a parasite transmitted
from tsetse flies, it can lead to fever, weakness, stiffness, and death
o
Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis): Caused by a parasite transmitted by
blood-sucking “assassin bugs,” it can lead to swollen lymph nodes and organ
damage.
• Infections are often caused by unsafe water, poor living conditions and poor sanitation.
Children are the most vulnerable to NTDs; people affected by these tropical diseases are
poor, lack a strong political voice and therefore have a low status in public health priorities.
That’s why these diseases are labeled “neglected.”
Symptoms
• Some NTDs, such as sleeping sickness, leprosy, and guinea-worm disease, may not
present symptoms for several years. Some immediately show symptoms such as fever,
aches, rash, sores, or swelling of the lymph nodes or at the site of infection.
Prevalence
• Neglected tropical diseases affect more than 1 billion people worldwide, mostly in poor
populations living in tropical and subtropical climates. 2
1
US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases,
http://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/tropicaldiseases/understanding/Pages/quickFacts.aspx
2
WHO, http://www.who.int/features/qa/58/en/index.html
• There is a lack of reliable statistics to establish the prevalence of each of the NTDs, and the
number of NTDs in total. The major ones include dengue, rabies, Buruli ulcer, endemic
treponematoses (yaws), leprosy (Hansen disease), Chagas disease, human African
trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), and leishmaniasis.
• They are frequently clustered together geographically and individuals are often afflicted with
more than one parasite or infection. More than 70% of countries and territories that report
the presence of neglected tropical diseases are low-income or lower middle-income
economies. 3
Treatment and prevention
• If treated, most NTDs are not fatal. But if left untreated, NTDs can lead to serious and
chronic conditions and can even cause death. Because NTDs generally occur in regions
with poor access to healthcare, many infected people likely die from their infections, which
often go unreported
• Most NTDs are relatively easy to treat and can be prevented by better access to existing
safe and cost-effective solutions
• Educating the at-risk population is also an important aspect of NTD prevention. By
controlling environmental factors that invite NTDs, people can reduce their risk. For instance,
eliminating areas of standing water where mosquitoes breed will reduce the risk of
mosquito-borne diseases, or sleeping under a treated bed net will reduce the risk of
diseases carried by flies that circulate at night.
Challenges
• The simple tools and treatments which are required to manage and prevent NTDs are not
yet available to the populations which are mostly affected by NTDs
3
WHO, http://www.who.int/features/qa/58/en/index.html
2