SynthesisPLoS neglected tropical diseases2018
Updated evidence of the association between toxocariasis and epilepsy: 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 24 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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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.
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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.
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Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Human toxocariasis.Clinical microbiology reviews · 2025Pooled it
- Dog and Cat Contact as Risk Factor for Human Toxocariasis: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2022Pooled it
- Seroprevalence estimates for toxocariasis in people worldwide: A systematic review and meta-analysis.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2019Pooled it
- The potential relationship between Toxocara canis infection and epilepsy in a rat model.Parasitology research · 2025Article
- Park entrances, commonly contaminated with infective Toxocara canis eggs, present a risk of zoonotic infection and an opportunity for focused intervention.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Investigation of the Occurrence of Zoonotic Intestinal Parasites along the Karmanasa River Bank in Lalitpur, Nepal.Veterinary medicine and science · 2025Article
- Challenges in Toxocariasis Diagnosis: From Pericarditis, through Hepatic Tumor, to the Detection of Brain Aneurysms: Case Report.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Prevalence, Infection, and Risk to Human Beings ofVeterinary sciences · 2024Review
- Emerging and Re-Emerging Parasitic Infections of the Central Nervous System (CNS) in Europe.Infectious disease reports · 2023Review
- Who Let the Dogs Out? Unmasking the Neglected: A Semi-Systematic Review on the Enduring Impact of Toxocariasis, a Prevalent Zoonotic Infection.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Review
- Long-Standing International Cooperation in Parasitology Research: A Summary of 35 Years of Activities in the Bolivian Chaco.Tropical medicine and infectious disease · 2022Review
- Brain food: rethinking food-borne toxocariasis.Parasitology · 2022Review
- The role of helminths in the development of non-communicable diseases.Frontiers in immunology · 2022Review
- Case-Control Study to Assess the Association between Epilepsy andMicroorganisms · 2021Article
- Clinical spectrum of symptoms in cerebral Toxocariasis (Review).Experimental and therapeutic medicine · 2021Review
- Potential Parasitic Causes of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis Endemic Area in the Ituri Province, Democratic Republic of Congo.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Role of cats in human toxocarosis.Companion animal · 2020Article
- "Begging the Question"-DoesPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2020Article
- Article
- Zoonotic and vector-borne parasites and epilepsy in low-income and middle-income countries.Nature reviews. Neurology · 2020Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo gain further insight on the association between human toxocariasis and epilepsy in light of the new evidence in the last years.
methodsA systematic review was conducted without date and language restriction in the following electronic databases: MEDLINE (PubMed), Ingenta Connect, Science Direct (Elsevier), RefDoc, Scopus, HighWire, Scielo and the database of the Institute of Neuroepidemiology and Tropical Neurology of the Limoges University (IENT). Two investigators independently conducted the search up to November 2017. A pooled odds ratio (OR) was estimated using a random effects model. Meta-regression was conducted to investigate potential sources of heterogeneity.
resultsDatabase search produced 204 publications. Eleven case-control studies were included that were carried out in 13 countries worldwide. A total number of 4740 subjects were considered (2159 people with epilepsy and 2581 people without epilepsy). The overall pooled OR was 1.69 (95% CI 1.42-2.01) for the association between epilepsy and Toxocara spp. seropositivity. A positive association was constantly reported in the restricted analysis (WB as confirmatory or diagnostic test, younger population, and population-based studies). Meta-regression showed no statistically significant association between covariates and outcome.
conclusionThe updated meta-analysis provides epidemiological evidence of a positive association between Toxocara seropositivity and epilepsy. New surveys supported the association, mainly population-based studies. On this basis, health strategies to reduce the impact of Toxocara spp are strongly advised. Further research should be performed to understand the physiopathological mechanisms of toxocara-associated epileptogenesis.
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