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Tabarak Allah hospital - Gedaref, Sudan
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Kala azar, or visceral leishmaniasis, is the second deadliest parasitic disease in the world – only malaria kills more people.

A neglected tropical disease, kala azar is caused by a parasite, spread to humans through the bite of infected female sand flies. It attacks the immune system and is almost always fatal if not treated.

Also known as visceral leishmaniasis, kala azar is the most serious form of leishmaniasis and is endemic in 76 countries, with hundreds of millions at risk of infection. There are between 50,000 and 90,000 new cases a year, about 90 per cent of which occur in Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan. Between 1989 and 2020, MSF teams treated nearly 150,000 people for kala azar; over a third in South Sudan.

Diagnosis and treatment of the disease, especially of the variety found in eastern Africa, can be complex and painful.

 
20 years providing live-saving treatment to Kala azar patients in Abdurafi
Ethiopia

Two decades of combatting the world’s most neglected diseases

Project Update 26 Sep 2023
 
Mobile clinic in the South Omo zone
Ethiopia

People in Omo Valley at high risk to kala azar 

Project Update 28 Mar 2023
 
SOUTH SUDAN KALA AZAR
Neglected diseases

No more neglected diseases, no more neglected patients

Press Release 27 Jan 2021
 
Human African Trypanosomiasis in DRC
Neglected diseases

Overcoming neglect: Finding ways to manage and control NTDs

Report 26 Jan 2021
 
Diagnosing, treating and researching HIV-kala azar co-infection
Kala azar

Diagnosing, treating and researching HIV-kala azar co-infection in Ethiopia

Project Update 20 Sep 2018
 
Seeking malaria treatment around Aweil, South Sudan
Disease prevention

Five epidemics to watch

Press Release 25 Jan 2016
 
South Sudan

Tackling a deadly outbreak of tropical disease

Voices from the Field 16 Jan 2015
 
Kala Azar in Bihar, India
Kala azar

Increased access to diagnosis and treatment of HIV-VL co-infection is imperative for eliminating kala azar

Press Release 1 Dec 2014
 
Kala Azar in Bihar
India

MSF supports the introduction and roll-out of single-dose treatment for kala azar in Bihar State

Press Release 17 Nov 2014
 
Journal article

Visceral Leishmaniasis and HIV Co-infection in Bihar, India: Long-term Effectiveness and Treatment Outcomes with Liposomal Amphotericin B (AmBisome)

7 Aug 2014
Journal article
 
Journal article

Visceral Leishmaniasis as an AIDS Defining Condition: Towards Consistency across WHO Guidelines

17 Jul 2014
Journal article
 
Journal article

Hypokalaemia-Induced Rhabdomyolysis after Treatment of Post-Kala-azar Dermal Leishmaniasis (PKDL) with High-Dose AmBisome in Bangladesh - A Case Report

20 Jun 2014
Journal article
Advanced HIV management in Homa Bay
Medical Resource

MSF Field Research

We produce important research based on our field experience. So far, we have published articles in over 100 peer-reviewed journals. These articles have often changed clinical practice and have been used for humanitarian advocacy. All of these articles can be found on our dedicated Field Research website.

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