Evaluation of the prevalence and clinical impact of toxocariasis in patients with eosinophilia of unknown origin

Abstract

Background/AimsEosinophilia has numerous diverse causes, and in many patients, it is not possible to establish the cause of eosinophilia. Recently, toxocariasis was introduced as one cause of eosinophilia. The aims of this study were to evaluate the prevalence of toxocariasis and the clinical impact of albendazole treatment for toxocariasis in patients suspected of eosinophilia of unknown origin.MethodsWe performed a retrospective chart review. After evaluation of cause of eosinophilia, the patients suspected of eosinophilia of unknown origin performed immunoglobulin G antibody specific assay for the Toxocara canis larval antigen by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.ResultsThis study evaluated 113 patients, 69 patients (61%) were suspected of eosinophilia of unknown origin. Among these 69 patients, the frequency of T. canis infection was very high (45 patients, 65.2%), and albendazole treatment for 45 eosinophilia with toxocariasis was highly effective for a cure of eosinophilia than no albendazole group regardless of steroid (82.3%, p = 0.007). Furthermore, among the nonsteroid treated small group (19 patients), albendazole treatment for eosinophilia were more effective than no albendazole group, too (83.3% vs. 28.6 %, p = 0.045).ConclusionsThe prevalence of toxocariasis was high among patients suspected of eosinophilia of unknown origin; therefore, evaluation for T. canis infection is recommended for patients with eosinophilia of unknown origin. Furthermore, for patients suspected of eosinophilia of unknown origin who have positive results for T. canis, albendazole treatment may be considered a valuable treatment option.

First Report of Toxocara canis Seroprevalence in Military Personnel and Their Families with Eosinophilia Referred to a Military Hospital in Tehran, Iran, 2015 - 2016

“…This result was in discordance with the results of studies in Korea and Babol (20,34), but unlike the study performed in Korea on patients with eosinophilia of unknown origin (16).…”

“…About 72% of seropositive patients in the current study were male that was in concordance with most studies (3,5,8,15,16,35,36). Naturally, the military males are more tending to infection compared to females.…”

“…Also, the Toxocara seroprevalences differed a lot from the current study results, which indicate weather differences (16,34).…”

“…Different studies are performed to evaluate anti-Toxocara antibody in patients with eosinophilia, and prevalence of toxocariasis in patients with eosinophilia was highly reported in Iran and world (15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20).…”

Clinical course and treatment outcomes of toxocariasis-related eosinophilic disorder

“…The prevalence of Toxocara infection in this study was very high in cases of eosinophilia, which is consistent with recent studies indicating a prevalence of >5%. [ 20 – 22 ] In particular, considering that most of the patients followed at our center are urban residents, the current prevalence of toxocariasis is likely to be an underestimate in both urban and rural areas. Therefore, Toxocara infection should be considered a potential cause of clinical eosinophilia, particularly in male patients with a recent history of raw meat ingestion.…”