Kala Azar outbreak in Lankien, South Sudan Jan 2015.

he conflict that erupted in South Sudan little more than a year ago has left people more vulnerable to a deadly tropical disease known as kala azar (visceral leishmaniasis). The risk of infection increases as people are displaced by fighting into areas where the disease is prevalent and malnutrition lowers their ability to fight the infection. With many health facilities not functioning in conflict areas, getting treatment is more difficult. Last year, MSF treated over 6,700 cases of kala azar in South Sudan, more than double the number of cases it treated the year before (2714 cases treated in 2013). The majority of people treated were in Lankien, a dusty settlement in the conflict affected state of Jonglei. Kala azar is a tropical, parasitic disease transmitted through bites from certain types of sand fly. Kala azar is characterised by fever, weight loss, enlargement of the liver and spleen, anaemia and immune-system deficiencies. Without treatment in a place like South Sudan, kala azar is always fatal. Photo/Karel Prinsloo for MSF

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