2006年VOA标准英语-Disease Kills Thousands in Sudan

By Ernest Leong
Washington, D.C.
03 January 2006
 
See report on Sudan

According to the World Health Organization, there are 500,000 new cases of kala azar  per year.  Kala azar is a deadly epidemic¹ spreading through impoverished² regions in sub-Saharan Africa, Brazil and Southeast Asia.  Africa's Sudan is one of the countries hardest hit by this disease. 

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Sudan kala-azar victim Nyatudy Riak Marial being carried by family in Kotch South Sudan  
  

Over the years, civil war, famine and drought have taken their toll³ on the Sudanese.  Another constant enemy is disease.  A new epidemic of kala azar is sweeping⁴ through southern Sudan, killing⁵ thousands.

Kala azar is a brutal⁶ disease, easily and quickly spread.  Dr. Erwin de Vries is with Medecins Sans Frontieres [Doctors without Borders], or M-S-F.

"You catch it like malaria⁷ -- from a sand fly -- and it wastes you as if you have HIV/AIDS, he says"
 

Sudan Medecins Sans Frontieres Dr. Erwin de Vries, in Lankien   
  
Kala azar is a systemic disease affecting the immune system.  Its symptoms include fever, anemia⁸, weakness and wasting. 

"Within a few months time you will look like a skeleton and you will be dead," adds the doctor.

M-S-F physicians are battling the epidemic.  Resistant⁹ strains of the disease have developed. 

The treatment for kala azar with compounds of Antimony takes 17 days to work.  An experimental vaccine¹⁰ is undergoing clinical trials.  For those who can get treatment, the survival rate in Sudan is 90 percent.

But health facilities are limited in Sudan.  A recent UN report estimates there is only one doctor for every 100,000 people in southern Sudan.  And malnutrition¹¹ is making a bad situation worse.
  
 
Sudan baby with intravenous tube in hand crying
  
Pete Buth is M-S-F's Operational Director in southern Sudan. "People are facing a daily struggle for survival because of a lack of food, because that is normal in this place."

The European Union recently allocated¹² 165 million euros to help battle disease in Africa.  Sudan will be the biggest recipient¹³.

1 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

2 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

4 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

5 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

6 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

7 malaria   

n.疟疾

参考例句：

• He had frequent attacks of malaria.他常患疟疾。
• Malaria is a kind of serious malady.疟疾是一种严重的疾病。

8 anemia   

n.贫血，贫血症

参考例句：

• The doctors analyzed the blood sample for anemia. 医生们分析了贫血的血样。
• I was put on iron tablets for my anemia.我曾因贫血吃补铁药片。

9 resistant   

adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的

参考例句：

• Many pests are resistant to the insecticide.许多害虫对这种杀虫剂有抵抗力。
• They imposed their government by force on the resistant population.他们以武力把自己的统治强加在持反抗态度的人民头上。

10 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

11 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

12 allocated   

adj. 分配的 动词allocate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The Ford Foundation allocated millions of dollars for cancer research. 福特基金会拨款数百万美元用于癌症研究。
• More funds will now be allocated to charitable organizations. 现在会拨更多的资金给慈善组织。

13 recipient   

a.接受的,感受性强的 n.接受者,感受者,容器

参考例句：

• Please check that you have a valid email certificate for each recipient. 请检查是否对每个接收者都有有效的电子邮件证书。
• Colombia is the biggest U . S aid recipient in Latin America. 哥伦比亚是美国在拉丁美洲最大的援助对象。