Imagine someone falling asleep as they walked
along the street! Or in the midst of a conversation – at work or at the
market! People simply suddenly feel
heavy, drowsy, and off they go into fairyland.
And they may remain unconscious for anything from a full day to nearly a
week!
But this is not a Mr Beans story line. According
to a report in the Telegraph,
things have been like this for two years (since March 2013) for residents of
the tiny village of Kalachi, in Kazakh.
Almost a quarter of the 600 residents have experienced this phenomenon
one time or the other. And even animals such as cats and dogs are not exempted.
“One
moment you’re talking, the next you’re asleep,” said Lyubov Bilkova, who told
Russia’s state-owned Vesti television station she had suffered no less than
eight attacks of the mysterious “sleeping sickness.” “Sometimes you don’t sleep,
but you look like you’re drunk.”
The Telegraphs reports that “While the disease
has baffled doctors, locals say there are several common factors to the
attacks. They tend to come in waves, they seem to be more common during a thaw
than when the ground is frozen, and, say some, there is a correlation with wind
direction.” . Viral and bacterial tests
have ruled out known diseases like African trypanosomiasis, which can have
similar symptoms.
For now, residents are resigned to packing
overnight bags whenever they leave their house in the case of
eventualities. “Everyone is afraid,”
said Ms Bilkova. “Everyone is afraid of sleeping.” http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/kazakhstan/11497382/Sleeping-sickness-traps-Kazakh-town-in-waking-nightmare.html
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