black disease

noun

, Veterinary Pathology.

1. an acute, usually fatal disease of sheep caused by general intoxication from Clostridium novyi, an anaerobic organism that multiplies in parts of the liver damaged by the common liver fluke.

black disease

noun

1. vet science an infectious necrotic hepatitis in sheep and occasionally cattle caused by to toxins produced by infection with species of Clostridial . Secondary to liver fluke infestation, the disease is characterized by sudden death. So-called because of the black discolouration of subcutaneous tissues due to congestion and haemorrhage seen at post-mortem

Word History and Origins

Origin of black disease¹

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

One has to but look at the statistics to see that this has become a black disease, a Latinx disease and a disease of poverty.

From The Guardian

“As a child I had asthma, and I remember my parents saying it was a black disease, because that’s what we thought, growing up,” Busby said.

From Washington Post

It is quite possible that the black disease of the Garo Hills in Assam is due to extreme and acute development of a pernicious form of malaria.

From Project Gutenberg