schistosomiasis

American  

[shis-tuh-soh-mahy-uh-sis] / ˌʃɪs tə soʊˈmaɪ ə sɪs /

noun

Pathology.

1. an infection caused by parasitic flukes of the genus Schistosoma, occurring commonly in eastern Asia and in tropical regions and transmitted to humans through feces-contaminated fresh water or snails: symptoms commonly include pain, anemia, and malfunction of the infected organ.

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schistosomiasis British  

/ ˌʃɪstəsəʊˈmaɪəsɪs /

noun

1. Also called: bilharziasis.  a disease caused by infestation of the body with blood flukes of the genus Schistosoma

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schistosomiasis Scientific  

/ shĭs′tə-sə-mī′ə-sĭs /

1. Any of a group of diseases caused by flatworm parasites of the genus Schistosoma that infest the blood of humans and other mammals, characterized by severe diarrhea and damage to vital organs, including the intestine and bladder. Schistosomiasis is seen in rural areas of Africa, Latin America, and Asia, and it is transmitted through contact with contaminated water.

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Etymology

Origin of schistosomiasis

First recorded in 1905–10; schistosome + -iasis

Example Sentences

Schistosomiasis is a parasitic infection that occurs when people or snails infected with Schistosoma worms enter the freshwater, namely ponds, lakes and rivers.

From Fox News • Oct. 6, 2019

Schistosomiasis is sometimes called bilharzia or snail fever because the illness-causing larvae spend their nights tucked away in the shells of snails in freshwater lakes.

From New York Times • Mar. 1, 2018

Schistosomiasis is also known as bilharzia after Theodor Bilharz, the German parasitologist who first described S. haematobium in 1851.

From Nature • Nov. 7, 2017

Schistosomiasis or snail fever, which can cause deadly blood loss, affects hundreds of thousands of people in Yemen, for example.

From Reuters • Feb. 2, 2010

Schistosomiasis, caused by a tiny blood fluke which burrows under the skin of river bathers, causes fever, hives, bladder infection, sometimes cirrhosis of the liver.

From Time Magazine Archive