Epidemic spastic paraparesis in Bandundu (Zaire)

Epidemiological findings of twenty sporadic cases of epidemic spastic paraparesis (buka-buka) in three areas of Bandundu (Zaire) are reported. These findings suggest the involvement of an infectious agent and do not support the hypothesis of a dietary cyanide intoxication, which has been advanced to explain the outbreak of a very similar disease (Mantakassa) in Mozambique.