Trypanosoma brucei gambiense
West African sleeping sickness
Symptoms reported
- •Winterbottom’s sign (cervical lymphadenopathy)
- •Daytime somnolence
- •Kerandel’s sign (delayed pain sensation)
- •Pruritus
- •Insomnia at night
Life cycle
Spread by tsetse flies, the parasite multiplies in the blood and eventually invades the central nervous system.
Transmission
By the bite of the tsetse fly (Glossina palpalis group).
Conventional medical treatment
Pentamidine for Stage I; Eflornithine or Melarsoprol for Stage II.
For information only. Discuss with a licensed healthcare provider before starting any pharmaceutical.
Treatment Options — Natural First, Pharmaceutical When Needed
Natural First
- •Wormwood
- •Olive Leaf
- •Pau d'Arco
- •Activated charcoal (binder)
- •Hydration + electrolytes
- •Rest + bone broth nutrition
Pharmaceutical (if natural-first insufficient)
- •Pentamidine for Stage I; Eflornithine or Melarsoprol for Stage II.
When to escalate to pharmaceutical
Pharmaceutical first if: > 14 days of diarrhea, dehydration, weight loss > 5%, immunocompromised host, hepatic abscess (Entamoeba), CNS involvement, or pregnancy.
Traditional herbal alternatives
In stock at our apothecary
In our database (educational reference)
Also referenced (not currently in our database):
Each herb above carries a tradition. See the 2,000-year lineage of Western herbal medicine →
“Patient develops characteristic progressive daytime somnolence (hence called as “sleeping sickness”), with restlessness and insomnia at night”
— Essentials of Medical Parasitology
This page is for educational purposes only. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Consult a licensed healthcare provider before acting on anything you read here.