slim disease

noun

1. a form of AIDS common in Africa, marked by emaciation and fever.

Word History and Origins

Origin of slim disease¹

First recorded in 1985–90

Example Sentences

The Aids epidemic has ravaged major parts of the continent, but it was research led from Africa that made the connection in the 1980s between Aids, then prevalent among homosexual men in the US, and "slim disease" in Africa.

From BBC

A prosperous trader, he had contracted "slim disease," a painful wasting away of body tissues by uncontrolled weight loss, chronic diarrhea and prolonged fever.

From Time Magazine Archive