Main Entry:

schis·to·so·mi·a·sis

Pronunciation:

\ˌshis-tə-sō-ˈmī-ə-səs\

Function:

noun

Inflected Form(s):

plural schis·to·so·mi·a·ses \-ˌsēz\

Etymology:

New Latin, from Schistosoma

Date:

1906

: infestation with or disease caused by schistosomes ; specifically : a severe endemic disease of humans in Africa and parts of Asia and South America that is contracted when cercariae released into freshwaters (as rivers) by a snail intermediate host penetrate the skin and that is marked especially by blood loss and tissue damage —called also snail fever