Loiasis with Peripheral Nerve Involvement and Spleen Lesions

Federico Gobbi Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy; Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France; Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy; Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain

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Michel Boussinesq Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy; Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France; Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy; Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain

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Marta Mascarello Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy; Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France; Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy; Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain

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Andrea Angheben Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy; Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France; Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy; Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain

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Maria Gobbo Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy; Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France; Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy; Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain

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Andrea Rossanese Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy; Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France; Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy; Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain

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Manuel Corachán Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy; Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France; Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy; Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain

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Zeno Bisoffi Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy; Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France; Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy; Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain

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Loiasis, which is caused by the filarial nematode Loa loa, affects millions of persons living in the rainforest areas and savannah regions of central Africa. Typical manifestations are calabar swellings and the eyeworm. We report a case of loiasis with unusual clinical complications: a peripheral neuropathy and focal hypo-echogenic lesions of the spleen, which disappeared after treatment with albendazole and ivermectin. The literature reports that L. loa infection can be associated with various manifestations, some of them being serious. More information is needed to better characterize the protean manifestations of the disease in loiasis-endemic areas to evaluate the true incidence of loiasis.

Author Notes

*Address correspondence to Federico Gobbi, Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy. E-mail: federico.gobbi@sacrocuore.it

Authors' addresses: Federico Gobbi, Andrea Angheben, Maria Gobbo, Andrea Rossanese, and Zeno Bisoffi, Centro per le Malattie Tropicali, Ospedale Sacro Cuore-Don Calabria, Negrar, Verona, Italy, E-mails: federico.gobbi@sacrocuore.it, andrea.angheben@sacrocuore.it, maria.gobbo@sacrocuore.it, andrea.rossanese@sacrocuore.it, and zeno.bisoffi@sacrocuore.it. Michel Boussinesq, Unité Mixte de Recherche 145, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement and Université Montpellier 1, Montpellier, France, E-mail: michel.boussinesq@ird.fr. Marta Mascarello, Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Policlinico G. B. Rossi, Verona, Italy, E-mail: martamasca@yahoo.it. Manuel Corachán, Centre de Recerca en Epidemiologia i Salut Internacional, Hospital Clinic (CRESIB), Barcelona, Spain, E-mail: manuel.corachan@mundivia.es.

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