- A new outbreak of widespread "madness", known
as "Grisis Signis" among native Central American tribes, is affecting
native Miskito communities on the northern Caribbean Nicaraguan coast,
and health authorities have not offered any scientific explanation for
this phenomenon.
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- The information, published today by "El Nuevo Diario"
newspaper, indicates that this region of the country is also suffering
famine caused by a plague of rats that devoured crops. It adds that at
least 31 native persons in the northern Caribbean coast had been affected
by "Grisis Signis", which provokes attacks of violence and hysteria.
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- Saul Miranda, head of the health center in Waspam, the
main municipality on the Coco River at the Honduras border, told the newspaper
that 21 cases were detected in the Raiti community, 729 km northeast of
Managua. He added that 4 additional cases were detected in the community
of Santa Fe, while in Krin Krin village, indigenous leaders reported 6
ill persons.
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- The illness causes seizures and hallucinations, affecting
only Miskito natives, who interpret the affliction as the result of a curse
or sorcery. Those affected become quite strong, attacking households and
becoming violent when somebody tries to disarm them. Some walk around the
villages armed with sticks and machetes, sometimes returning to their homes
after having been absent for some days. The only way in which affected
persons return to normal is by taking herbs given to them by a traditional
healer ("curandero"), but after the episode they do not remember
anything at all.
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- During other outbreaks [a similar outbreak was reported
in October 2003], Health Ministry authorities have not offered any scientific
explanation for this illness.
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- Meanwhile, Coco River communities have been suffering
for many months from famine caused by a plague of rats, which devoured
their crops, and they have also been affected by floods caused by the recent
tropical storms and hurricanes. Government authorities, with support from
the World Food Program (WFA), have brought food and support for these communities
that have been historically affected by natural disasters.
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- -- ProMED-mail
- promed@promedmail.org
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- There are a number of possible causes for this type of
psychosis. Among those related to infectious disease are brucellosis (Annesley
PT. Schizophreniform psychosis with chronic brucellosis. Br J Psychiatr
1968; 114: 353-4), leptospirosis (Marshall RB, Scrimgeour G. Schizophreniform
psychosis associated with leptospirosis. N Z Med J. 1978 Sep 13;88(619):212-3),
and Lyme disease (Fallon BA & Jenifer A. Nields JA. Lyme disease: a
neuropsychiatric illness. Am J Psychiatry 151:11, Nov 1994 pp.1571-1580).
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- Bur since in the current cases the symptoms are associated
with a food shortage, the victims could be eating old stocks, contracting
mycotoxicosis from ergot, which was associated with the witch trials at
Salem, Massachusetts, USA, because of its psychoactive properties; see
ProMED post 19961022.1786.
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- Aggression is a symptom of Korsakoff's psychosis, caused
by primary thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency or beri-beri, which occurs
when there is an inadequate dietary intake of thiamine; see ProMED post
20031111.2791 Thiamine deficiency, infant formula - Israel. It is strange
that it is only Miskito Indians that are affected; perhaps an anthropologist
reader could provide some insight? - Mod.JW
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- Patricia A. Doyle, DVM, PhD Bus Admin (Tropical Agriculture
Economics)
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- Please visit my "Emerging Diseases" message
board at:
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- http://www.clickitnews.com/ubbthreads/postlist.php?
- Cat=&Board=emergingdiseases
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- Zhan le Devlesa tai sastimasa
- Go with God and in Good Health
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