ArticleParasites & vectors2008
Oh my aching gut: irritable bowel syndrome, Blastocystis, and asymptomatic infection.
Article in Parasites & vectors, 2008. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 93 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
93 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 184 citations in OpenAlex.
- Epidemiology of Blastocystis sp. infection in China: a systematic review.Parasite (Paris, France) · 2019Pooled it
- Article
- Blastocystis, an Enigmatic Parasite.Acta parasitologica · 2026Review
- Prevalence and Genetic Diversity of Blastocystis sp. in Humans, Dogs and Cats in Gabon: A One Health Perspective.Zoonoses and public health · 2026Article
- Assessing Zoonotic Risks ofPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Relationship betweenOpen research Europe · 2025Article
- One Health Disparities and Blastocystis infection among smallholder farmers in northeastern Madagascar.PLOS global public health · 2025Article
- Parasite-mediated alteration of behaviour and biomolecular dynamics in a mouse model.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2025Article
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome Associated with Blastocystis hominis or Without Relationship to It? A Case-Control Study and Minireview.Acta parasitologica · 2024Review
- Prevalence and genotype/subtype distribution of Enterocytozoon bieneusi and Blastocystis in donkeys in Shanxi Province, north China.Parasitology research · 2024Article
- Site-Specific Incidence Rate of Blastocystis hominis and Its Association with Childhood Malnutrition: Findings from a Multi-Country Birth Cohort Study.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2023Article
- Gut bacteria influence Blastocystis sp. phenotypes and may trigger pathogenicity.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2023Article
- Comparison of Various Diagnostic Techniques for the Detection ofJournal of veterinary research · 2023Article
- Resistance of Blastocystis to chlorine and hydrogen peroxide.Parasitology research · 2023Article
- Risk of inflammatory bowel disease in uveitis patients: a population-based cohort study.Eye (London, England) · 2022Article
- [Molecular characterization of algerian strains ofMedecine tropicale et sante internationale · 2022Article
- Influence ofJournal of parasitic diseases : official organ of the Indian Society for Parasitology · 2022Article
- Occurrence, genetic diversity and zoonotic potential of Blastocystis sp. in forest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii) in Southwest China.Parasite (Paris, France) · 2022Article
- The synthesis of extracellular vesicles by the protistan parasiteFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2022Article
- Metabolic Fluctuations in the Human Stool Obtained fromMetabolites · 2021Article
33 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 10 institutions in 9 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Blastocystis is a prevalent enteric protozoan that infects a variety of vertebrates. Infection with Blastocystis in humans has been associated with abdominal pain, diarrhea, constipation, fatigue, skin rash, and other symptoms. Researchers using different methods and examining different patient groups have reported asymptomatic infection, acute symptomatic infection, and chronic symptomatic infection. The variation in accounts has lead to disagreements concerning the role of Blastocystis in human disease, and the importance of treating it. A better understanding of the number of species of Blastocystis that can infect humans, along with realization of the limitations of the existing clinical laboratory diagnostic techniques may account for much of the disagreement. The possibility that disagreement was caused by the emergence of particular pathogenic variants of Blastocystis is discussed, along with the potential role of Blastocystis infection in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Findings are discussed concerning the role of protease-activated receptor-2 in enteric disease which may account for the presence of abdominal pain and diffuse symptoms in Blastocystis infection, even in the absence of fever and endoscopic findings. The availability of better diagnostic techniques and treatments for Blastocystis infection may be of value in understanding chronic gastrointestinal illness of unknown etiology.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.