/ bɪlˈhɑːtsiə; NAmE -ˈhɑːrt-/ noun
[ U ] a serious disease, common in parts of Africa and S America, caused by small worms that get into the blood
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WORD ORIGIN
mid 19th cent.: modern Latin , former name of the genus Schistosoma , named after T. Bilharz (1825–62), the German physician who discovered the parasite.