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sleeping sickness
- an infectious disease, esp. common in tropical Africa, caused by either of two trypanosomes (Trypanosoma gambiense or T. rhodesiense) that are transmitted by the bite of a tsetse fly: it is characterized by fever, drowsiness, and coma, usually ending in prolonged coma and death
- inflammation of the brain, caused by a virus and characterized by drowsiness and lethargy
See sleeping sickness in American Heritage Dictionary 4
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