A mosquito-borne disease locally known as kaki gajah or elephant foot is ballooning out of control in Riau province in Indonesia recently, Xinhua quoted local media as reporting today. The disease gets its name for causing enlargement of the entire leg or arm of the sufferers. The spacious peat land, rain forests and palm oil plantations in the province are safe havens for mosquitoes which transmit the tropical foot abscess disease filariasis, in addition to dengue and malaria. According to a recent survey, of the province's all eleven regencies, only Kampar and Rokan Hulu remain free of filariasis, the major newspaper The Jakarta Post said. "Riau has become an endemic area for the disease. Thousands of people have been infected," Burhanuddin Agung, head of the provincial health office, told the English daily. Early symptoms include a high fever which recurs for about three days each month, red lines on swollen legs and feet and abscess on the feet. "This disease can attack anyone, no matter their age or health condition," said Burhanuddin.
