Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Tag: Noma

  • Noma: The disfiguring, devouring disease

    Howard FischerUppsala, Sweden “Maladie dévoreuse de beauté et de vie”1(“An illness devouring both beauty and life”)– Edmond Kaiser, founder of the humanitarian organization Fondation Sentinelle Noma (also called necrotizing ulcerative stomatitis, gangrenous stomatitis, or cancrum oris), is a disease of extreme poverty. It progresses rapidly and is often fatal. Victims of this infection are usually…