title: Loa loa-does it deserve to be neglected?
abstract: More than 10 million people in western and central Africa are estimated to be infected with Loa loa filarial nematodes. Like most other infectious diseases, L loa filariasis (loiasis) covers a wide range of symptoms. Severe complications have been reported; however, most observations are anecdotal, typically in travellers. The widespread use of filaricidal drugs within eradication programmes of Onchocerca volvulus and Wuchereria bancrofti led to the observation that concomitant L loa infection increases the risk of severe treatment-associated, life-threatening complications. Initiatives were therefore launched to map the risk of loiasis. Insight about the epidemiology of L loa has advanced notably; however, its effect on the individual as well as on the community level has not been well studied. In the absence of appropriate studies, L loa is commonly judged a harmless nematode, and loiasis as a separate entity does not belong to the list of neglected tropical diseases to be controlled or eradicated in worldwide campaigns. We advocate reorientation of research efforts towards a patient-centric view of loiasis and, as a first step, to establish the disease burden in disability-adjusted life-years of this chronic infection, and to answer the question of whether loiasis should be included in future control programmes.
authors: Centre de Recherches Médicales de Lambaréné (CERMEL), Lambaréné, Gabon, and Institute of Tropical Medicine, Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, Germany. Electronic address: wolfram.metzger@uni-tuebingen.de.
authors: Wolfram Gottfried
authors: WG
authors: Metzger
authors: Centre de Recherches Médicales de Lambaréné (CERMEL), Lambaréné, Gabon, and Institute of Tropical Medicine, Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen, Germany.
authors: Benjamin
authors: B
authors: Mordmüller
mesh_terms: D015766:Albendazole / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004049:Diethylcarbamazine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005369:Filaricides / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D007559:Ivermectin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008118:Loiasis / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D005369:Filaricides; D007559:Ivermectin; D015766:Albendazole; D004049:Diethylcarbamazine