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Kuassi Bernardin, “I do not know if it is fishing that gave me this disease”

Buruli ulcer often occurs in places near water bodies such as slow-flowing rivers, ponds, swamps, lakes. Environmental disturbances such as deforestation, mining, constructions of dams and irrigation systems may be linked to the occurence of the disease WHO
    COTONOU

    Little is known about Buruli ulcer other than that a painless lump can quickly fester into sores, open wounds, and finally into permanent deformity. There is no medically recommended prevention because the cause is not known. Research is scarce. Treatment for severe cases – including amputation – far outstrip family income in most places where the disease strikes.This is the third in a series of interviews with Buruli patients.



    Kuassi Bernardin, 49, fisherman



    “One night when I was sleeping, my feet started to swell and the next morning I went to hospital where they gave me a shot that helped with the pain. But at night the pain was back, which is when I asked my brother to get leaves to prepare a treatment with the traditional healer.



    “This happened to me in Côte d’Ivoire in March 2009. I tried to heal myself but when nothing worked, my parents asked me to come here to Benin [for treatment].



    “I do not know if it is fishing [in rivers and lakes] that gave me this disease. I have been fishing for 10 years now. For the past month, my business has slumped. It is fishing that feeds me and now I can no longer do anything. That was the activity that fed my family, my children, my wife. Now everything has stopped.”



    gc/pt/np

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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