Samples from a number of patients with the skin condition are currently being run through laboratory tests to establish the disease and ascertain the cause.

The East Mamprusi Municipal Health Director, Mr Mark Abugri, told the Daily Graphic that preliminary clinical investigations had revealed that the disease was scabies.

"Clinically, we have diagnosed it to be scabies,” he said.

He indicated that the Disease Control Unit of the GHS was putting in preliminary measures to get drugs to treat the victims.

Symptoms

The infectious disease has so far hit about 16 communities in the municipality, and has resulted in skin rashes among the residents, particularly women and children. 

It is said to have been detected about three months ago at Kurugu, from where it spread rapidly to a number of communities, including Dagliboali, Tambogu, Jawani and Lataribu.

Most of the victims have rashes, with sores on their fingers, buttocks, knee joints, toes and heads.

Cause

Mr Abugri said the disease was primarily caused by poor personal hygiene, adding that “we are currently sensitising the residents to the disease to prevent it from spreading to more people".

On the impact of the disease, he said it was not fatal but could cause skin itch and discomfort to its victims.

Worst affected

The Daily Graphic gathered that the Dagliboali community was the worst affected, with every household recording at least one case of infection, with women and toddlers being the most affected.

A nurse at the Dagliboali Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compound, Mr Anass Hamza, said:

"Almost everybody in the community has been affected and it is because of the poor personal hygiene and also most of the households use the same towels and sponges, which has aided the spread.”

Victims

Some of the victims who spoke to the Daily Graphic said although they had sought medical attention at various health centres, they continued to suffer from the disease, which had spread to other relatives.

One of them, Asana Yakubu, said: “I am not able to sleep in the night because my body always itches. I have been scratching my body and now there are sores all over it.”