Strange scabies-like disease hits Tororo District

More than 100 people have been infected with a strange scabies-like disease in Amoni cell A, Asinge Ward, Malaba town council in Tororo District.

''It’s a very strange skin disease that starts with itching and then suddenly spreads to the entire body and makes one restless,’’ Mr Terensio Osire, 82, a resident in the area said.

Locals say they have been in pain for close to two months- struggling to fight the disease but it’s instead multiplying especially in families in the River Malaba corridor.

Another resident, Ms Florence Akodoi says continuous body itching affected her marriage as she and her husband became suspicious that the condition could have resulted from adultery on either side.

''We developed suspicion that one of us might have had an extra marital relationship, thereby contracting Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)  but sanity is resuming after seeing many other infected families in the neighbourhood,’’ she said.

Amidst growing concern, more residents are now calling for government intervention.

‘'Suspension of public and private transport under the 42-day lockdown prevents natives from accessing medical attention,’’ Mr Osire said, adding that ‘‘most of them are relying on Village Health Teams for medication while others have opted for herbal medicine to treat the disease.’’

Mr Emmanuel Emuria who is from an extended family that has over ten members infected says the disease seems contagious.

‘‘For the last one month I have been having a restless stay especially amongst the children. At first we thought it was measles but later discovered that it was a different disease,’’ he narrates.

Amoni cell -A- village LC1 chairman, Mr Cosmos Ekisa suspects the disease outbreak originated from families using river Malaba water.

According to Mr Ekisa, communities started experiencing body itching during the recent rainy season and ‘‘it could be as a result of poor waste disposal.’’

‘’Here in Malaba, its funny that people fear to meet the cost of emptying their septic tanks and prefer releasing faecal matter directly to the channels leading to the river. All our health authorities at the town council know and these could be the effects,’’ he said.

However, the Principal Health Inspector for Malaba Town Council, Mr Boniface Obbo says they have already sent a team of health workers to the area to do a surveillance to guide action.

He attributes the fast-spread of the disease to a delay by locals in informing authorities about the disease outbreak.