Human African Trypaniosomiasis (HAT) or sleeping sickness is an old disease to be now considered as reemergent. HAT is endemic in 36 sub-Saharan African countries, in areas where tsetse flies are found. The public health importance of HAT is underestimated, but the disease causes severe social disruption in many rural areas. Along the past fifteen years, numerous studies were made, and now, the mechanisms involved in the disease pathogenesis and in the characteristics of sleep-wake disruption become to be better understood. But, since 50 years, when current drugs were introduced, problems regarding HAT chemotherapy have not been solved. Nevertheless, in-depth studies about trypanosome metabolism have permitted to discover new drug targets. Written by specialists who are very experienced in their respective fields, the contributions provide an indispensable tool for practitioners and scientists.

Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), or sleeping sickness, is a parasitic infection that is almost invariably fatal unless treated. It is a neglected tropical disease that occurs in sub-Saharan Africa. The incidence of the disease is declining in response to intensive surveillance and control in endemic areas. As a result, HAT is among the neglected tropical diseases targeted by the World Health Organization (WHO) for elimination. WHO maintains exhaustive records of all declared cases; in 2018, a historically low number of cases (less than 1000) was reported. The remarkable progress in the control of gambiense HAT has relied on case-finding and curative treatment, a strategy that interrupts transmission by depleting the reservoir of parasites in humans. This has been combined occasionally with vector control activities. The subject of these guidelines, therefore, is of utmost importance for the continuation of progress to eliminate HAT. The recent approval of a new medicine (fexinidazole) for the treatment of gambiense HAT has opened new possibilities for the management of cases and thus warrants the new WHO recommendations contained herein. While studies of fexinidazole and other therapies are ongoing, these guidelines are considered interim guidelines until new information becomes available. This document focuses on the management of patients affected by gambiense HAT and constitutes an update to the WHO therapeutic guidance issued in 2013.

This new volume written by experts in the field of trypanosome research covers every aspect of trypanosome-vector-host biology. It is a must read for basic researchers working with trypanosomes and related organisms, infection and drug development as well as parasitology in a broader sense. ​

A comprehensive resource describing innovative technologies and digital health tools that can revolutionize the delivery of health care in low- to middle-income countries, particularly in remote rural impoverished communities Revolutionizing Tropical Medicine offers an up-to-date guide for healthcare and other professionals working in low-resource countries where access to health care facilities for diagnosis and treatment is challenging. Rather than suggesting the expensive solution of building new bricks and mortar clinics and hospitals and increasing the number of doctors and nurses in these deprived areas, the authors propose a complete change of mindset. They outline a number of ideas for improving healthcare including rapid diagnostic testing for infectious and non-infectious diseases at a point-of-care facility, together with low cost portable imaging devices. In addition, the authors recommend a change in the way in which health care is delivered. This approach requires task-shifting within the healthcare provision system so that nurses, laboratory technicians, pharmacists and others are trained in the newly available technologies, thus enabling faster and more appropriate triage for people requiring medical treatment. This text: Describes the current burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases in low- to middle-income countries throughout the world Describes the major advances in healthcare outcomes in low-to middle-income countries derived from implementation of the United Nations/World Health Organisation’s 2000 Millennium Development Goals Provides a review of inexpensive rapid diagnostic point-of-care tests for infectious diseases in low-resource countries, particularly for people living in remote rural areas Provides a review of other rapid point-of-care services for assessing hematological function, biochemical function, renal function, hepatic function and status including hepatitis, acid-base balance, sickle cell disease, severe acute malnutrition and spirometry Explores the use of low-cost portable imaging devices for use in remote rural areas including a novel method of examining the optic fundus using a smartphone and the extensive value of portable ultrasound scanning when x-ray facilities are not available Describes the use of telemedicine in the clinical management of both children and adults in remote rural settings Looks to the future of clinical management in remote impoverished rural settings using nucleic acid identification of pathogens, the use of nanoparticles for water purification, the use of drones, the use of pulse oximetry and the use of near-infrared spectroscopy Finally, it assesses the potential for future healthcare improvement in impoverished areas and how the United Nations/World Health Organization 2015 Sustainable Development Goals are approaching this. Written for physicians, infectious disease specialists, pathologists, radiologists, nurses, pharmacists and other health care workers, as well as government healthcare managers, Revolutionizing Tropical Medicine is a new up-to-date essential and realistic guide to treating and diagnosing patients in low-resource tropical countries based on new technologies.

This state-of-the-art reference book includes comprehensive coverage of the biology and control of African, Asian and South American trypanosomiasis ("sleeping sickness") in man and animals. It describes recent research developments in the biology and molecular biology of trypanosomes (the protozoan parasite) and their vectors, and methods in diagnosis and control, such as trapping tsetse fly vectors. Different sections of the book are devoted to biology of trypanosomes, vector biology, epidemiology and diagnosis, pathogenesis, disease impact, chemotherapy and disease control, and vector control. The book contains contributions from leading experts from Europe, North and South America, and Africa.

"In The Orexin/Hypocretin System: Physiology and Pathophysiology, leading researchers and clinicians set the stage for further research on the loss of orexin/hypocretin neurons in humans, regulation of sleep and wakefulness by the orexin/hypocretin system, and the role of the orexin/hypocretin system in many other physiological processes, including feeding, autonomic regulation, and neuroendocrine regulation. Topics of interest include an assessment of the functions and the physiology of orexin/hypocretin, its pathophysiology in human narcolepsy-cataplexy, and possible pharmacological treatments. The authors also introduce several experimental methods for orexin/hypocretin research, and, using multidisciplinary approaches, explain their uses and limitations." "Authoritative and state-of-the-art, The Orexin/Hypocretin System: Physiology and Pathophysiology will aid scientists in the search for novel bioactive peptides and their receptors, as well as novel physiological insights and opportunities for the clinical treatment of not only narcolepsy, but also a broad range of diseases associated with endocrine, feeding and body weight regulation."--Résumé de l'éditeur.