Since I have been on a streak of posting about weird
diseases and disorders, I’m just going to continue to do so. This week I am
going to be talking about elephantiasis. I had heard about this condition when
I was in high school due to one of the coaches on another softball team having
this in his legs. I never really did any research on it so I decided to do so
now.
Elephantiasis is a condition that causes an enlargement of a
certain part of the body. This enlargement usually takes place in the limbs. In
some cases, it even includes the external genitals. The enlargement is due to
an obstruction in the lymphatic system which results in a lymph build up in the
certain areas. Due to the lymph system being a part of the body that protects against
disease and it being a network of tubular channels that drains lymph from certain
parts of the body it is not good for one of these channels to be obstructed. It
has been found that Elephantiasis can also be caused by lymphatic filariasis.
It has been said in some cases that those two conditions could be used interchangeably.
Other causes of lymphatic damage are sexually transmitted disease,
streptococcal, tuberculosis, and leprosy. It has also been recently found that
a worm by the name of Brugia malayi may be the cause of elephantiasis.
I have touched on the symptoms of this condition, but there
are more. Once the body part enlarges due to the lymph buildup it tends to look
like the size and texture of an elephant appendage. This means that it is not
only large, but the skin tends to dry, darken, and thicken. Fever and chills
might also be present in these patients. Elephantiasis tends to only be common
in the more tropical regions such as Southeast Asia, India, Africa, and South
America.
There is still hope for these patients though! There are
ways that this condition can be treated. This condition can be treated with diethylcarbamazine
which is a medication taken orally. It is an inhibitor of arachidonic acid
metabolism in microfilaria. Meaning that it kills the worm or parasite that is
causing the problem. The only problem is that in some cases medication isn’t enough
to treat the enlargement. Sometimes surgery is necessary. Mostly the surgery is
just reconstructive to help get the body part back to normal size and use. In
these surgeries they might also remove lymphatic tissue to help with the flow
of lymph.
Therefore, I feel like people that develop this condition
are lucky due to the fact that there are ways to treat it. Rather than some of
the other diseases and conditions I have spoken about where there is literally
no hope for them and they just have to live with it. I think it’s truly amazing
learning about all the different types of conditions that are out there and I
hope you enjoy the posts about it. It is always good to stay informed of the ever-changing
world around you!
https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/elephantiasis/
https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/elephantiasis/
I have definitely heard about this disease a couple times before, but is it weird that I find it cool that you've seen this in person? Like, out of pure curiosity I would constantly want to talk to this person and understand how they feel. But, that may be a bad idea. Instead, I am just gonna keep enjoying reading your post. I think you did a great job and provided so much insightful details.
ReplyDeleteOne of my most vivid memories was looking through an encyclopedia in elementary school and seeing a picture of an African guy with elephantiasis. I found it to be so strange but interesting at the same time. I couldn't believe that stuff like that actually existed. This was a very interesting blog post.
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