243.WHAT IS TB(TUBERCULOSIS)?
TB, or TUBERCULOSIS, is a disease caused by infection by a germ known as the “tubercle bacillus.” It is, unfortunately, a common infection in all parts of the world, and is most common where people live in crowded, unsanitary conditions and have poor nutrition.
Luckily, man has strong resistance to the infection. About 90 per cent of the people who live in cities develop at least a small spot of infection at some time or other, but most do not even know they have it. Less than 10 per cent of people infected with TB die of it.
242.WHAT IS SLEEPING SICKNESS?
Sleeping sickness is a very serious disease that attacks men and animals in Africa. It is an infection caused by parasites called “trypanosomiasis.” These parasites, or germs, are carried by the tsetse fly which is common in many parts of central Africa.
The tsetse fly may pick up the parasites when it bites a sick man or animal. The trypanosomes enter the fly’s stomach and begin to multiply. They then pass through the salivary glands which supply juice to the fly’s mouth. Here they develop into forms which can infect man.
241.WHAT IS RABIES?
Rabies is one of the oldest diseases known to man. Once the disease appears in man or animals, death is almost certain. There is no cure for it. Just what is this terrible disease? Rabies is a disease that infects the brain and spinal cord, which is why it is so harmful to the life of the body. The infection is caused by a virus, which means a germ too small to be seen with the ordinary microscope.
