SynthesisPLoS neglected tropical diseases2018
Cognitive deficits and educational loss in children with schistosome infection-A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in PLoS neglected tropical diseases, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 82 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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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
82 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 142 citations in OpenAlex.
- Malaria and helminth co-infections in children living in endemic countries: A systematic review with meta-analysis.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2021Pooled it
- SCORE Studies on the Impact of Drug Treatment on Morbidity due toThe American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2020Pooled it
- The Schistosomiasis Consortium for Operational Research and Evaluation Rapid Answers Project: Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis to Provide Policy Recommendations Based on Available Evidence.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2020Pooled it
- Economic evaluations of human schistosomiasis interventions: a systematic review and identification of associated research needs.Wellcome open research · 2020Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Trial
- Effect of maternal praziquantel treatment for Schistosoma japonicum infection on the offspring susceptibility and immunologic response to infection at age six, a cohort study.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2021Trial
- Five-Year Impact of Different Multi-Year Mass Drug Administration Strategies on ChildhoodThe American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2019Trial
- Clinical evaluation for morbidity associated with soil-transmitted helminth infection in school-age children on Pemba Island, Tanzania.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2019Trial
- Community-level prevalence and determinants of Schistosoma mansoni infection in river-crossing Kebeles of Mizan-Aman Town, Southwest Ethiopia, where mass drug administration targets only school-aged children.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2026Article
- Praziquantel efficacy and post-treatment reinfection and incidence of Schistosoma mansoni among school-aged children in Northern Uganda: a 24-week cohort study in a high transmission focus.BMC infectious diseases · 2026Article
- Article
- Unravelling the true biopsychosocial impact of schistosomiasis.Trends in parasitology · 2026Review
- From parasite-induced immune activation to neuroinflammation and behavioral dysfunction: convergent mechanisms across protozoa and helminths: a review.Journal of neuroinflammation · 2026Review
- Liver and bladder morbidity in a Schistosoma mansoni and haematobium co-endemic area in the Democratic Republic of Congo.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2026Article
- Mass drug administration of praziquantel lowers the susceptibility of school-aged children toFrontiers in immunology · 2026Article
- Prevalence of schistosome infection among children under two years of age: a brief report from medium-to-high endemic regions of Schistosoma mansoni in Madagascar.Tropical medicine and health · 2025Article
- Prevalence and associated factors of schistosomiasis among children and adolescents visiting Chitokoloki Mission Hospital of Zambezi District.BMC infectious diseases · 2025Article
- Identifying hotspots of S. haematobium infection following praziquantel treatment during multiple annual mass drug administration campaigns in Zimbabwe.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Identifying key aspects to enhance predictive modeling for early identification of schistosomiasis hotspots to guide mass drug administration.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
22 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
7 authors at 5 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundBy means of meta-analysis of information from all relevant epidemiologic studies, we examined the hypothesis that Schistosoma infection in school-aged children (SAC) is associated with educational loss and cognitive deficits. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL
findingsThis review was prospectively registered in the PROSPERO database (CRD42016040052). Medline, Biosis, and Web of Science were searched for studies published before August 2016 that evaluated associations between Schistosoma infection and cognitive or educational outcomes. Cognitive function was defined in four domains-learning, memory, reaction time, and innate intelligence. Educational outcome measures were defined as attendance and scholastic achievement. Risk of bias (ROB) was evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa quality assessment scale. Standardized mean differences (SMD) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated to compare cognitive and educational measures for Schistosoma infected /not dewormed vs. uninfected/dewormed children. Sensitivity analyses by study design, ROB, and sequential exclusion of individual studies were implemented. Thirty studies from 14 countries, including 38,992 SAC between 5-19 years old, were identified. Compared to uninfected children and children dewormed with praziquantel, the presence of Schistosoma infection and/or non-dewormed status was associated with deficits in school attendance (SMD = -0.36, 95%CI: -0.60, -0.12), scholastic achievement (SMD = -0.58, 95%CI: -0.96, -0.20), learning (SMD = -0.39, 95%CI: -0.70, -0.09) and memory (SMD = -0.28, 95%CI: -0.52, -0.04) tests. By contrast, Schistosoma-infected/non-dewormed and uninfected/dewormed children were similar with respect to performance in tests of reaction time (SMD = -0.06, 95%CI: -0.42, 0.30) and intelligence (SMD = -0.25, 95%CI: -0.57, 0.06). Schistosoma infection-associated deficits in educational measures were robust among observational studies, but not among interventional studies. The significance of infection-associated deficits in scholastic achievement was sensitive to ROB. Schistosoma infection-related deficits in learning and memory tests were invariant by ROB and study design. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Schistosoma infection/non-treatment was significantly associated with educational, learning, and memory deficits in SAC. Early treatment of children in Schistosoma-endemic regions could potentially mitigate these deficits.
trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov CRD42016040052.
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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.