ArticlePLoS neglected tropical diseases2019
Onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy in the Democratic Republic of Congo: Clinical description and relationship with microfilarial density.
Article in PLoS neglected tropical diseases, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03052998 (Ivermectin Treatment in Patients With Onchocerciasis-associated Epilepsy), which is not on this map. Cited by 40 papers.
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.
Ivermectin Treatment in Patients With Onchocerciasis-associated Epilepsy: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Who cites it
40 citing papers in PubMed, 59 citations in OpenAlex.
- Declining Onchocerca volvulus transmission despite limited ivermectin delivery in the Kakoi-Koda focus, Ituri, Democratic Republic of the Congo: An epidemiological, entomological and landscape evidence synthesis.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2026Article
- Nodding Syndrome: The Need to Strengthen Epilepsy Care in Onchocerciasis-Endemic Areas and to Investigate the Pathogenesis of Onchocerciasis-Associated Epilepsy.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2026Article
- Article
- Ivermectin exposition during neurulation induces neural tube defects and neuromuscular alterations inFrontiers in pharmacology · 2026Article
- Investigating HLA haplotypes as a potential risk factor for nodding syndrome: A case-control study in the Mahenge area, Tanzania.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Community-directed treatment with ivermectin in Maridi, South Sudan: Impact of an onchocerciasis awareness campaign and bi-annual treatment on therapeutic coverage.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- Community-based epilepsy care in an onchocerciasis-endemic area: A 3-year cohort study in Mahenge, Tanzania.Epilepsia · 2025Article
- Cameroonian blackflies (Diptera: Simuliidae) harbour a plethora of RNA viruses.Virus evolution · 2025Article
- Diverse RNA viruses of parasitic nematodes can elicit antibody responses in vertebrate hosts.Nature microbiology · 2024Article
- Epidemiology of epilepsy in Wulu County, an onchocerciasis-endemic area in South Sudan.Heliyon · 2024Article
- Review of epilepsy care in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.Epilepsia open · 2024Review
- Cytotaxonomic characterization and estimation of migration patterns of onchocerciasis vectors (Simulium damnosum sensu lato) in northwestern Ethiopia based on RADSeq data.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2024Article
- Procedure for Handling and Storage ofTropical medicine and infectious disease · 2023Article
- Epilepsy and nodding syndrome in association with an Onchocerca volvulus infection drive distinct immune profile patterns.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2023Article
- AssessingPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Identification of the onchocerciasis vector in the Kakoi-Koda focus of the Democratic Republic of Congo.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2022Article
- Ivermectin treatment response in two rural villages with a high prevalence of onchocerciasis and epilepsy, Mahenge Tanzania.African health sciences · 2022Article
- Epileptogenesis in Common Parasitic Infections.Current neurology and neuroscience reports · 2022Review
- Post-Infectious Autoimmunity in the Central (CNS) and Peripheral (PNS) Nervous Systems: An African Perspective.Frontiers in immunology · 2022Review
- Bacteriome Diversity of Blackflies' Gut and Association withPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
13 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHigh epilepsy prevalence and incidence were observed in onchocerciasis-endemic villages in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). We investigated the clinical characteristics of onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy (OAE), and the relationship between seizure severity and microfilarial density.
methodsIn October 2017, ivermectin-naive persons with epilepsy (PWE) were recruited from onchocerciasis-endemic areas in the Logo health zone in the DRC. Additional PWE were enrolled in the Aketi health zone, where ivermectin had been distributed annually for 14 years. Past medical history, clinical characteristics and skin snips for Onchocerca volvulus detection were obtained from participants. Bivariate and multivariable analyses were used to investigate associations with microfilarial density.
resultsOf the 420 PWE in the Logo health zone, 392 were skin snipped (36.5% positive). Generalized motor seizures were most frequent (392 PWE, 93.3%), and nodding seizures were reported in 32 (7.6%) participants. Twelve PWE (3.1%) presented Nakalanga features. Sixty-three (44.1%) skin snip-positive PWE had a family history of epilepsy, compared to only 82 (32.9%) skin snip-negative PWE (p = 0.027). Eighty-one onchocerciasis-infected PWE were recruited in the Aketi health zone. Positive correlations between seizure frequency and microfilarial density were observed in Logo (Spearman-rho = 0.175; p<0.001) and Aketi (Spearman-rho = 0.249; p = 0.029). In the multivariable model adjusted for age, gender, and previous treatment, high seizure frequency was associated with increasing microfilarial density in Aketi (p = 0.025) but not in Logo (p = 0.148).
conclusionIn onchocerciasis-endemic regions in the DRC, a wide spectrum of seizures was observed. The occurrence of Nodding seizures and Nakalanga features, as well as an association between seizure severity and O. volvulus microfilarial density suggest a high OAE prevalence in the study villages.
trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT03052998.
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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.