ArticleBMC infectious diseases2018
Intra-aural tick bite causing unilateral facial nerve palsy in 29 cases over 16 years in Kandy, Sri Lanka: is rickettsial aetiology possible?
Article in BMC infectious diseases, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.
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13 citing papers in PubMed, 24 citations in OpenAlex.
- Molecular identification and phylogenetic analysis of spotted fever Rickettsiae in peripheral blood from suspected Rickettsiosis cases in Sri Lanka.BMC infectious diseases · 2026Article
- Apathy in the elderly: an atypical manifestation of spotted fever rickettsioses.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- [A case of Guillain-Barré syndrome due to infection withMedecine tropicale et sante internationale · 2025Article
- A case of acute labyrinthitis due to intra-aural tick infestation: a case report.Journal of medical case reports · 2025Article
- Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) in Patients with Tick-Borne Illness: A Scoping Review of 98 Cases.Infectious disease reports · 2024Article
- Ear Mites as an Overlooked Source of Ear Itching and Tinnitus - A Case Series.Indian journal of otolaryngology and head and neck surgery : official publication of the Association of Otolaryngologists of India · 2024Article
- Natural Clerodendrum-derived tick repellent: learning from Nepali culture.Experimental & applied acarology · 2023Article
- Signatures in in vitro infection of NSC-34 mouse neurons and their cell nucleus with Rickettsia helvetica.BMC microbiology · 2023Article
- Unusual Presentation of Otoacariasis: A Prospective Study at Referral Teaching Hospital.Indian journal of otolaryngology and head and neck surgery : official publication of the Association of Otolaryngologists of India · 2022Article
- Human Otoacariasis in Two Climatically Diverse Districts in Sri Lanka: Seasonality, Risk Factors, and Case Notes.Acta parasitologica · 2021Article
- Retrospective serological study ofInfection ecology & epidemiology · 2021Article
- Rickettsial infections of the central nervous system.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2019Review
- Scrub Typhus Associated with Central and Peripheral Nervous System Involvement: A Rare Diagnostic Entity.Annals of Indian Academy of NeurologyArticle
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundOver the last two decades intra-aural tick infestation (otoacariasis) has been a common occurrence in the hilly central region in Sri Lanka. Very occasional detection of isolated unilateral facial nerve palsy associated with otoacariasis attributed to toxin damage of the nerve prompted us to study the clinico-epidemiology and aetio-pathology of the problem.
methodsAll cases having isolated unilateral facial nerve palsy associated with otoacariasis presented to, Ear Nose and Throat clinic at General Hospital Kandy, Sri Lanka from 2001 to 2016 were included in the study. The facial palsies were assessed with nerve conduction studies and, harvested ticks were identified.
resultsThere were 29 patients with mean age of 46 years (range 22-76 years) with male to female ratio of 1:1.9. First 12 patients without specific treatment took 1-55 months for recovery and 4 had axonal degeneration. Last 5 patients were treated with doxycycline and recovered in 4 weeks. They had strong sero-conversion of immunofluorescence antibodies against spotted fever rickettsioses and the tick harvested from the last patient was PCR positive for rickettsial DNA. Identified ticks belonged to Dermacentor, Amblyomma, Rhipicephalus and Hyalomma species.
conclusionsOn contrary to popular toxin theory, we were able to demonstrate treatable rickettsial aetio-pathology as the cause of otoacariasis associated lower motor facial palsy in Sri Lanka.
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