River blindness in Hoima

By Amlan Tumusiime ABOUT 90,000 people in Hoima district are suffering from River Blindness, a disease caused by a Black Fly that bleeds in fast flowing rivers, an official in the Ministry of Health has said. Solomon Kwebiiha, the deputy district Ochecerciasis programme coordinator, told The New Vision on Monday that the disease had hit over 100 villages in seven out of the 13 sub-counties in the district. He said the disease had been confirmed in the sub-counties of Kiziramfumbii, Kabwoya, Buseruka, Kyabigambire, Kigorobya, Bugambe and Kitoba. Kwebiiha said symptoms of the disease include red watery eyes, body itching, nodules under the skin of the affected person and rough tough skin. He said the only preventive measure is massive treatment using ivermectin tablets which have been distributed in all the affected sub-counties. Kwebiiha said research was underway to establish whether the disease is associated with epilepsy. He said many children who had developed symptoms of River Blindness had dropped out of school after suffering from epilepsy. He said the research was being conducted by the Institute of Public Health at Makerere. University.