Ministry of Health distributes medicine against elephantiasis worms
The Ministry of Health, through the National Directorate of Public Health launched the medicine distribution programme against elephantiasis worms, in Cristo Rei’s Health Center, in the Díli Municipality, on May 2nd, 2016.
The development partner, Child Fund, supported the implementation of this medicine distribution programme. The teams went door-to-door visiting each family, across the 241 villages of the 31 sucos in the Díli Municipality.
The National Director for Public Health, Pedro Canísio, reported that based on the Ministry’s data, 29% of Timor-Leste’s population has been affected by diseases caused by worms and the results of the analysis show that 12.7% of these worms cause elephantiasis. 
As Pedro Canísio explained, this disease often causes fever for three to five days, and may disappear without treatment. People see red veins appear and feel pain in their thighs and armpits, extending to their toes and hands. Finally, large swellings may arise in their feet or hands, which disappear afterwards.
This disease may be caused by three worms wuchereria bancrofti, brugia malayi and brugia timori. The worms may live in the body during 4 to 6 years, spreading in the lymph and causing leg swelling. These worms enter the body through the mosquito bite, such as Culex, Mansonia, Anopheles and Aedes Aegyipte [these mosquitoes also spread other diseases, such as dengue or malaria].
Elephantiasis often appears in the legs, hands and genitals and always causes large swellings. This disease may infect anyone, regardless of their age or sex, and may lead to permanent deformation in the human body.
The distribution of medicines has already been concluded in the Eastern municipalities and in Dili. It will now continue in other Municipalities and also in the Special Administrative Region of Oecusse-Ambeno.
