Fly-Borne Skin Disease Afflicts Troops

More than 500 U.S. troops in the Middle East and parts of Asia have contracted a skin disease from sand-fly bites, the government said Thursday.

More than 500 U.S. troops in the Middle East and parts of Asia have contracted a skin disease from sand-fly bites, the government said Thursday. Between August 2002 and February, 522 cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis have been identified. Most of the cases of what soldiers call “Baghdad boil” happened in Iraq, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The parasitic disease can cause disfiguring sores and is endemic in parts of the tropics, subtropics and Southern Europe. About 1.5 million cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis happen each year, the CDC said.Because there are no approved drugs to prevent infections, the Pentagon is working to decrease soldiers’ risk by improving their living conditions and stressing the wearing of long sleeves and the use of insect repellent and bed netting.(Source: ABC America, April 2004)