Neurocysticercosis in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, a Diagnostic Challenge from Oyam District, Uganda

Segala, Francesco Vladimiro; Vita, Elda De; Amone, James; Ongaro, Daniel; Nassali, Ritah; Oceng, Bonny; Okori, Samuel; Putoto, Giovanni; Lochoro, Peter; Ictho, Jerry; Fantoni, Massimo; Saracino, Annalisa; Gennaro, Francesco Di

doi:10.3390/idr14040054

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…The radiology departments as part of diagnosis play an important role in case identification in hospitals for patients presenting with convulsions, which is proved in Uganda as a case of a 73-year-old woman who presented with high blood pressure [34]. The scarce resources presented in the hospital reflect what is taking place in low-and middle-income countries for the shift in regimen for this case treatment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The cost of Computed Tomography scans and Magnetic Resonance Imaging, although gold standards, cannot be employed as a routine test for T. solium neurocysticercosis; the available serological tests suffer from low sensitivity and specificity and are not cost-effective [35]. These diagnostic challenges marginalize this neglected disease from routine diagnostics and treatment due to the scarcity of treatment presented for the discussed case [34].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Prevalence and Risk Factors of Human Taenia solium Cysticercosis in Mbulu District, Northern Tanzania

Bandi,

Ngowi,

Mpolya

et al. 2024

Zoonotic Diseases

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Background: Taeniosis and cysticercosis are human infections caused by the pork tapeworm, Taenia solium. This study is a baseline for community-based intervention. We determined the prevalence of human cysticercosis and associated risk factors following a deworming program conducted throughout the country, with Mbulu District being among the districts in Northern Tanzania. Methods: Human cysticercosis was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Ag- ELISA). Household interviews and observations were conducted to identify risk factors for cysticercosis transmissions among households and communities. Results: Three hundred individuals participated in this study. The age ranged from 5 to 89 years, with a median of 19 years. The prevalence of human cysticercosis was 23 (7.67%). The prevalence was high with 6 (11.76%) among individuals aged 26 to 35 years and ±45 years. There was no statistically significant difference in the prevalence by age group, sex, or occupation. Among the 300 participants, 82 (27.3%) had received anthelmintics during the previous year; among these, 5 (21.7%) were infected. The likelihood of infection was low among anthelmintic users by 28% [0.72 (0.26–2.01)], but the protection was not significant. The communities differed in risk factors on the availability of a clean and safe water supply; 52.7% (46/86) of households visited had no pit latrine. The cysticercosis prevalence showed a significant difference in communities. Conclusions: The prevalence of human cysticercosis was high and associated with higher age groups. The prevalence was low among those who had taken anthelmintics and was associated with lower age groups. The current school deworming program has a positive effect on school children, while the elderly are at higher risk because the intervention did not target them. It is recommended to scale up anthelmintic intervention to higher age groups.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Human Taenia solium Cysticercosis in Mbulu District, Northern Tanzania

Bandi,

Ngowi,

Mpolya

et al. 2024

Zoonotic Diseases

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“…The ultimate goal is to reach eradication worldwide by 2030. It is also crucial to maintain the high quality of studies and clinical attention on neglected diseases in Europe as well and especially in Italy [52], the gateway to the Mediterranean, which can make an important contribution to the control and definitive eradication of this disease, and other neglected diseases [53].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Guinea Worm Disease: A Neglected Diseases on the Verge of Eradication

et al. 2022

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Background: Dracunculiasis, also known as Guinea worm disease (GWD), is a neglected tropical disease (NTD) caused by a parasite (Dracunculus medinensis). In the past, dracunculiasis was known as “the disease of the empty granary” because of the difficulties patients had in going to work in fields or to school when affected by this disease. In tropical areas, the condition has been widespread in economically disadvantaged communities, and has been associated with reduced economic status and low levels of education. Methods: we searched PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and WHO websites for literature addressing dracunculiasis published in the last 50 years. Results: by development and optimization of multi-layered control measures, transmission by the vector has been interrupted, but there are foci in several African countries with a high risk of compromising the results obtained in the control of this neglected disease. Conclusion: this review features state-of-the-art data on the infection prevalence, geographical distribution, diagnostics, parasite–host interactions, and the pathology of dracunculiasis. Also described are the current state and future perspectives for vector control and elimination strategies.

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“…The most frequent clinical manifestations of NCC are seizures, headaches, and intracranial hypertension. In endemic regions, NCC is considered the most frequent cause of acquired seizures and epilepsy, accounting for up to 30% of seizure disorders in these areas (Ndimubanzi et al, 2010 ; Mazumder and Lee, 2022 ; Segala et al, 2022 ; Takayanagui and Haes, 2022 ).…”

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confidence: 99%

New animal models of neurocysticercosis can help understand epileptogenesis in neuroinfection

Garcı́a

Verástegui²,

Arroyo³

et al. 2022

Front. Mol. Neurosci.

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Neurocysticercosis (NCC), defined as an infection of the central nervous system (CNS) by the cystic larval stage of the pork tapeworm Taenia solium, remains a major challenge in public health mainly due to associated neurological morbidity (Garcia et al., 2020;. This infection is endemic in most of the developing world including Central and South America, Sub-Saharan Africa, and large regions of Asia including India, China, and Southeast Asia (Ndimubanzi et al., 2010;Garcia et al., 2020;. NCC is also increasingly diagnosed in non-endemic countries and industrialized countries due to immigration and travel from endemic zones (O'Neal et al., 2011;Gabriël et al., 2015;O'Neal and Flecker, 2015).T. solium has a complex two-host life cycle. Humans acquire intestinal taeniasis by ingesting poorly cooked pork containing the parasitic cystic larvae or cysticerci. Once the adult tapeworm develops in the human small intestine, its microscopic eggs are shed with the stools. In places with poor sanitation and domestic pig raising, pigs ingest contaminated human feces containing T. solium eggs. Ingested Taenia eggs release their embryos, called oncospheres, which cross the intestinal mucosa, and are distributed by the circulatory system throughout the body. They evolve into metacestodes (postoncospheral stage) and encyst to form larval vesicles or cysticerci, reaching their definitive size in 2-3 months. These infected pigs become the intermediate host by being infected with the larval stage of the infection (cysticercosis), and thus the source of taeniasis in the community. Humans can also act as intermediate host instead of pigs and become infected with cysticercosis through accidental ingestion of Taenia eggs by fecal oral infection from a tapeworm carrier in their surroundings (Flisser, 1994).Clinical symptoms of NCC predominantly result from involvement of the CNS. Outside the nervous system, cysticercosis causes few or no symptoms and the cysts are usually identified and destroyed by the host's immune response. The clinical manifestations, diagnostic and therapeutic approaches, and prognosis of NCC vary enormously depending on the type, stage, location, number and size of parasites in the Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience frontiersin.org

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Neurocysticercosis in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, a Diagnostic Challenge from Oyam District, Uganda

Cited by 3 publications

References 12 publications

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Human Taenia solium Cysticercosis in Mbulu District, Northern Tanzania

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Human Taenia solium Cysticercosis in Mbulu District, Northern Tanzania

Guinea Worm Disease: A Neglected Diseases on the Verge of Eradication

New animal models of neurocysticercosis can help understand epileptogenesis in neuroinfection

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