The old thread died and nobody bumped it when I asked; follow along in this CNN album if you like: http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/01/health/gallery/river-blindness/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

Otherwise known as onchocerciasis, it does crazy shit like:

2/3/2013 3:54:21 AM

2/3/2013 7:06:28 AM

Quote :

"Onchocerciasis (/'??k?s?r'sa?.?s?s/ or /'??k?s?r'ka?.?s?s/), also known as river blindness and Robles disease, is a parasitic disease caused by infection by Onchocerca volvulus, a nematode (roundworm).[1] Onchocerciasis is second in the world only to trachoma as an infectious cause of blindness.[1] It is not the nematode, but its endosymbiont, Wolbachia pipientis, that causes the severe inflammatory response that leaves many blind.[2] The parasite is transmitted to humans through the bite of a black fly of the genus Simulium. The larval nematodes spread throughout the body. When the worms die, their Wolbachia symbionts are released, triggering a host immune system response that can cause severe itching, and can destroy optical tissue in the eye.[3]"

2/3/2013 7:37:50 AM

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2/3/2013 10:10:52 AM