Sickle cell and trypanosoma
So in researching my last post on this site I learned that people with sickle cell may have trypanosoma -- AKA African Sleeping Sickness, Chagas Disease or kissing bug disease -- and my experience suggests it should be possible to identify trypanosoma via visual inspection of the fingernails and asking a few questions without lab tests.
Also in my experience, zithromax is effective treatment for trypanosoma, though it won't cure it. I don't know how to verify this, but my impression is zithromax is cheaper and less toxic than the antiparasitic medications typically used.
According to ME: Trypanosoma is treatable, but it takes a long time to walk it back.
So hypothetically, a quick, cheap and effective means to start improving life for people with sickle cell could look like this:
1. Identify trypanosoma via fingernail inspection and a few questions.
2. Give them a meal and a full course of zithromax in one sitting.
You should FEED them if you do this because a full course of zithromax in one sitting feels like a bomb went off in your stomach if you don't eat enough with it. (Source: ME. I know this from firsthand experience.)
Public health events talks about one sitting oral administration of zithromax.
I'm a BLOGGER. You shouldn't just take my word for anything. To do this as an aid organization or medical professional, you would need to VERIFY:
1. That zithromax is legitimate treatment for trypanosoma.
2. Fingernail symptoms are reliable identification for trypanosoma.
If it works and you get all your ducks in a row, you COULD take this out to the people in the villages in rural Africa.
Cold prep ramen is an option for that scenario. Take BOTTLED water to make it. Add veggies or whatever to make it heartier.
You may wish to leave out the celery because zithromax is more effective in an acidic environment. I used to take it with orange juice. Tomatoes are also acidic and an ingredient you can add to cold prep ramen.
See also:
Nice to have but not essential: You could leave behind a supply of cinnamon rolls or something else with cinnamon because they will have hellacious trypanosoma die off and cinnamon is the only thing I know that mitigates the intense despair that causes.
Do WARN them that despair is going to happen if this helps them. That will help them cope with this disturbing side effect.
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