SLEEPING SICKNESS

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 108, 3 November 1937, Page 5

SLEEPING SICKNESS

A DOCTOR'S EXPERIMENTS

A British doctor's experiments, whereby he • deliberately contracted sleeping sickness in an effort to find means of fighting the disease in Africa, were revealed when the annual report of the Colonial Development Advisory Committee was issued, says the "Daily Telegraph."

The report states that Dr. J. F. Corson, Mr. H. C. Smith, of the Veterinary Service, and an African assistant were dealing with the disease at Tinde, an area of Tanganyika, in which it is a very big problem.. It continues:

"In the course of a number of experiments they exposed themselves to the bites of infected flies or to inoculation from infected animals.

"As a result Dr. Corson and the African assistant developed sleeping sickness, thus proving that certain strains of Trypanosome rhodesiense [parasitic organisms of the disease] had not lost the power to infect man through a stay of a lengthy period in the- bodies of animals:"

After contracting sleeping sickness Dr. Corson was treated with the drug germanin and made a satisfactory recovery. The African assistant also suffered no ill effects following treatment with germanin. Dr. Corson's research work has been proceeding for several years.

The committee reveals that, indirectly; the security of British rule in African colonies has led to an increase in the disease, as the natives now travel about the country carrying it with them. .

Previously they did not dare move from their towrs. If a tribe became weakened through disease it soon fell an easy, victim to its enemies, the disease often being exterminated with it,