SynthesisBMC public health2019
Associations of mental disorders and neurotropic parasitic diseases: a meta-analysis in developing and emerging countries.
Synthesis in BMC public health, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis 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.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 32 citations in OpenAlex.
- Impact of parasitic infection on mental health and illness in humans in Africa: a systematic review.Parasitology · 2022Pooled it
- From parasite-induced immune activation to neuroinflammation and behavioral dysfunction: convergent mechanisms across protozoa and helminths: a review.Journal of neuroinflammation · 2026Review
- Editorial: Severe mental illnesses in children: unravelling developmental trajectories, neuropsychiatric impairments, and chronic pain.Frontiers in child and adolescent psychiatry · 2026Article
- Toxocariasis, risk and protective factors, and mental health difficulties in early childhood: a comparison of marginalised Roma communities and the majority population.Parasitology research · 2025Article
- A systematic review and meta-analysis of protozoan parasite infections among patients with mental health disorders: an overlooked phenomenon.Gut pathogens · 2024Review
- 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
- Examining the Relationships between the Incidence of Infectious Diseases and Mood Disorders: An Analysis of Data from the Global Burden of Disease Studies, 1990-2019.Diseases (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Toxoplasmosis and Schizophrenia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Prevalence and Associations and Future Directions.Psychiatric research and clinical practice · 2022Article
- Canine-Assisted Interventions and the Relevance of Welfare Assessments for Human Health, and Transmission of Zoonosis: A Literature Review.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2022Review
- Galectins - Important players of the immune response to CNS parasitic infection.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2021Review
- High Seroprevalence ofJournal of tropical medicine · 2021Article
- Prevalence and determinants of depressive symptoms in patients with Chagas cardiomyopathy and predominantly preserved cardiac function.Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundAlthough they are declining worldwide, neurotropic parasitic diseases are still common in developing and emerging countries. The aim of this study was to estimate the pooled prevalence and pooled association measures of comorbidities between mental disorders (anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia) and neurotropic parasitic diseases (malaria, cysticercosis, toxoplasmosis, human African trypanosomiasis, Chagas disease, and human toxocariasis) in developing and emerging countries.
methodsAs the first meta-analysis on this topic, this study was performed in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. The protocol was registered in PROSPERO (N°CRD42017056521). The Medline, Embase, Lilacs, and Institute of Epidemiology and Tropical Neurology databases were used to search for articles without any restriction in language or date. We evaluated the quality of studies independently by two investigators using the Downs and Black assessment grid and pooled estimates using the random-effects method from CMA (Comprehensive Meta Analysis) Version 3.0.
resultsIn total, 18 studies published between 1997 and 2016 met our inclusion criteria. We found that the prevalence of anxiety and depression in people suffering from Chagas disease and/or neurocysticercosis was 44.9% (95% CI, 34.4-55.9). In 16 pooled studies that included 1782 people with mental disorders and 1776 controls, toxoplasmosis and/or toxocariasis were associated with increased risk of schizophrenia and/or bipolar disorders (odds ratio = 2.3; 95% CI, 1.7-3.2). Finally, toxocariasis and/or toxoplasmosis were associated with an increased risk of the onset of schizophrenia (odds ratio = 2.4; 95% CI, 1.7-3.4).
conclusionOur pooled estimates show that the associations between diseases studied are relatively high in developing and emerging countries. This meta-analysis supports the hypothesis that toxoplasmosis could be the cause of schizophrenia. These findings could prove useful to researchers who want to further explore and understand the associations studied.
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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.