Guinea worm disease
Noun: A tropical disease caused by infection with the parasitic nematode Dracunculus medinensis. The disease is characterized by the painful emergence of a long, thin worm through a skin blister, typically on the lower limbs. It is contracted by drinking water containing tiny water fleas (copepods) that harbor the worm's larvae.
This is a medical and public health term used to describe a specific parasitic infection. - Guinea worm disease is one of the neglected tropical diseases targeted for eradication by global health organizations. - The primary symptom of Guinea worm disease is a painful, burning blister where the adult female worm emerges. - Community-based interventions have drastically reduced the number of guinea worm disease cases worldwide.
- "Eradication of guinea worm disease": A major global health goal, as the disease is preventable with clean water access and health education.
- The Carter Center has led the campaign for the eradication of guinea worm disease.
- Dracunculiasis: The formal medical name for guinea worm disease.
- Guinea worm: Refers to the parasitic worm () itself that causes the disease.
- Dracunculiasis (technical synonym)
- Dracontiasis (an older, less common term)
- Water-borne disease: Guinea worm disease is a classic example of a water-borne parasitic infection.
- Neglected tropical disease (NTD): Guinea worm disease is classified as an NTD, a group of infections prevalent in tropical and subtropical regions.
- a painful and debilitating infestation contracted by drinking stagnant water contaminated with Guinea worm larvae that can mature inside a human's abdomen until the worm emerges through a painful blister in the person's skin