Scabies epidemic in West Darfur

The authorities of West Darfur state have confirmed that in the locality of Kereinik more than 3,000 people suffer from scabies, a phenomenon described to be the first of its kind in the area. The medical director of the Kereinik hospital, Dr Abd El Aziz Adam Yusuf, revealed that the number of persons infected with scabies has reached 3,130, based on samples taken from the patients for initial tests. The commissioner of Kereinik locality, Younis El Haj Ibrahim, has acknowledged the increase in scabies infections too. He stressed the inability of the locality to combat the disease, calling on the state government and the federal Ministry of Health to intervene and curb the spread of the disease in the locality and other parts of West Darfur state. He affirmed that the results of tests conducted by a medical team at the state level confirmed that the skin disease is indeed scabies. Yet, a number of residents of Kereinik locality told Radio Dabanga that the number of those infected with scabies far exceeds what the government authorities have announced, explaining that the patients have been suffering from the disease for a long time, and reportedly also from ringworm. They reported that they had notified the authorities since the emergence of the diseases. The authorities however, did not respond to their early complaints.File photo