kala-azar

American  

[kah-lah-ah-zahr, kah-luh-az-er] / ˌkɑ lɑ ɑˈzɑr, ˌkɑ ləˈæz ər /

noun

Pathology.

1. a chronic, usually fatal disease occurring in tropical areas of Asia and the Western Hemisphere, characterized by irregular fever, enlargement of the spleen, anemia, and emaciation, caused by the protozoan Leishmania donovani.

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kala-azar British  

/ ˌkɑːləəˈzɑː /

noun

1. a tropical infectious disease caused by the protozoan Leishmania donovani in the liver, spleen, etc, characterized by fever and weight loss; visceral leishmaniasis

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Etymology

Origin of kala-azar

1880–85; < Hindi, equivalent to kālā black + Persian āzār disease

Example Sentences

Cases of kala-azar, also known as visceral leishmaniasis, have spiked in Kenya, from 1,575 in 2024 to 3,577 in 2025, according to the health ministry.

From Barron's • Feb. 8, 2026

For nearly a year, repeated misdiagnoses of the deadly kala-azar disease left 60-year-old Harada Hussein Abdirahman's health deteriorating, as an outbreak in Kenya's arid regions claimed a record number of lives.

From Barron's • Feb. 8, 2026

But there are "very few facilities in the country able to actively diagnose and treat," kala-azar, Dr Paul Kibati, tropical disease expert for health NGO Amref, told AFP.

From Barron's • Feb. 8, 2026

At Duar, while she tried to cope with simultaneous outbreaks of meningitis and measles, at least 900 patients were also suffering from kala-azar.

From Time Magazine Archive

It is caused by the presence in the system of a parasite very similar to or identical with the one causing kala-azar and is regarded by some as a modified form of that disease.

From Insects and Diseases A Popular Account of the Way in Which Insects may Spread or Cause some of our Common Diseases by Doane, Rennie Wilbur