flâneur

The fight to cure South Sudan’s mysterious neurological disorder | Global development | The Guardian

theguardian.com · 1,826 words · saved by 1 readers

Nodding syndrome is a distressing disease that stunts growth, harms brains and sparks convulsions. Though its cause is still unknown, there is now hope that epilepsy drugs can help afflicted children T he other children move away, frightened, when the convulsions start. Tabo takes a long, guttural breath before slumping on to the ground unconscious, her entire body shaking. The 17-year-old’s mother, Penina Monyo Gulu Biro, gently holds the girl while the attack lasts. A minute or two later, Tabo (pictured above) sits up again, tears rolling down her cheeks. “She cries because she’s sad to be like this,” says Biro. In 2016, Tabo was diagnosed with nodding syndrome, the neurological disorder that killed her 10-year-old sister, Nyibili. Nodding syndrome was first identified in Tanzania in the 1960s, then it was seen in South Sudan in the 1990s and in Uganda in 2007. In the past five years cases have been reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic and Camero

Tabo Yowan, 17, suffers from nodding syndrome and does not have access to anti-epileptic medication. The disorder killed her sister Photograph: Florence Miettaux/The Guardian Nodding syndrome is a distressing disease that stunts growth, harms brains and sparks convulsions. Though its cause is still unknown, there is now hope that epilepsy drugs can help afflicted children By Florence Miettaux in Mvolo and Mundri Supported by About this content Mon 25 Mar 2024 04.00 EDT Last modified on Fri 7 Feb 2025 11.31 EST Share Prefer the Guardian on Google T he other children move away, frightened, when

related reading