Impact of 19 years of mass drug administration with ivermectin on epilepsy burden in a hyperendemic onchocerciasis area in Cameroon.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Surveys conducted in 1991-1992 in the Mbam Valley (Cameroon) revealed that onchocerciasis was highly endemic, with community microfilarial loads (CMFL) > 100 microfilariae/snip in some villages. Also in 1991-1992, a survey of suspected cases of epilepsy (SCE) found 746 SCE using a questionnaire administered to individuals identified by key informants, with prevalences reaching 13.6% in some communities. From 1998, annual community-directed treatment with ivermectin (CDTI) was implemented to control onchocerciasis. In 2017, a door-to-door household survey was conducted in three of the villages visited in 1991-1992, using a standardized 5-item epilepsy screening questionnaire.

Results

In 2017, a total of 2286 individuals living in 324 households were screened (582 i

SUBMITTER: Boulle C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6423875 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature