Doctor, Doctor...
By Dave Hall
For all you hypochondriacs out there, Dave Hall takes a regular look at a some of the more unusual medical conditions, as well as some you thought you knew all about.
This week: LAUGHING DISEASE or KURU.
| Condition – Confined to the mountainous regions of Papua New Guinea where the tradition used to be to eat other people’s brains. Not really a laughing matter, but the concept is pretty crazy. People who eat too many brains suffer a loss of balance, memory loss, shakiness, paralysis and strangely inappropriate laughter. |
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Contagion – You can't get this unless you become a cannibal yourself. So if you steer clear of that minefield and you’ll be fine.
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| Danger of death – Before cannibalism was abolished in PNG you were probably more likely to die from being butchered and eaten rather than contracting Kuru. But seeing as Kuru cases invariably result in death, termination is pretty likely all ways round. |  |
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Cure? – There is no cure for either Kuru or becoming a main course – bad news all round I'm afraid.
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Likelihood of getting time off work – If you get all the symptoms you’ll need some time off work to recover. The wildly inappropriate bouts of laughter will also guarantee your boss won't want you around too much.
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| Brag-ability – If you’ve survived Kuru it means you've been tucking into people's brains for dinner. I would be pretty careful about telling anyone – you’ll get funny looks. |
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Overall ridiculousness – Being an equivalent disease of CJD, kuru is not really a laughing matter. Which is a bit ironic. Note to self: don’t go picking fights in Papua New Guinea. |
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More conditions to come:
Fatal insomnia, polydactyly, rabies and more.
Find more curious conditions in Doctor Doctor. If you can't wait for the next Doctor Doctor, then why not find a phunny phobia to keep you going?
Image: Emiliano Spada
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