Definition for schistosomiasis

Schistosomiasis or bilharzia is a disease affecting many people in developing countries. In the form of 'acute' schistosomiasis, it is sometimes referred to as snail fever and cutaneous schistosomiasis may sometimes be commonly called swimmer's itch. more

Schistosomiasis or bilharzia is a disease affecting many people in developing countries. In the form of 'acute' schistosomiasis, it is sometimes referred to as snail fever and cutaneous schistosomiasis may sometimes be commonly called swimmer's itch. In certain African communities the process of overcoming schistosomiasis is an important rite of passage. Although it has a low mortality rate, schistosomiasis can be very debilitating. (Bilharzia, or bilharziosis, is the eponym for schistosomiasis in many countries, after Theodor Bilharz, who first described the cause of urinary schistosomiasis in 1851.) less