Abstract

To confirm our earlier evidence of a temporal and dose–response relationship between onchocerciasis and epilepsy, we conducted another cohort study in a different setting in Cameroon. Individuals whose Onchocerca volvulus microfilarial density (Ov-MFD) was measured in 1992–1994 when they were children were revisited in 2019 to determine if they acquired epilepsy. With reference to individuals with no microfilariae in 1992–1994, the relative risks of acquiring epilepsy were 0.96, 2.76, 3.67, and 11.87 in subjects with initial Ov-MFD of 1–7, 8–70, 71–200, and > 200 microfilariae per skin snip, respectively. This study further demonstrates reproducibility using the Bradford Hill’s criteria for causality.

Details

Title
A Second Population-Based Cohort Study in Cameroon Confirms the Temporal Relationship Between Onchocerciasis and Epilepsy
Author
Chesnais, Cédric B 1 ; Bizet, Charlotte 2 ; Campillo, Jérémy T 1 ; Njamnshi, Wepnyu Y 3 ; Bopda, Jean 4 ; Nwane, Philippe 4 ; Pion, Sébastien D 1 ; Njamnshi, Alfred K 3 ; Boussinesq, Michel 1 

 UMI 233, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), Université Montpellier, INSERM Unité 1175, Montpellier, France 
 UMI 233, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), Université Montpellier, INSERM Unité 1175, Montpellier, France; Centre for Research on Filariasis and other Tropical Diseases (CRFilMT), Yaoundé, Cameroon 
 Neurology Department, Central Hospital/Faculty of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, The University of Yaoundé I, (FMBS-UYI), Yaoundé, Cameroon; Brain Research Africa Initiative, BRAIN, Geneva, Switzerland/Yaoundé, Cameroon 
 Centre for Research on Filariasis and other Tropical Diseases (CRFilMT), Yaoundé, Cameroon 
Publication year
2020
Publication date
Jun 2020
Publisher
Oxford University Press
e-ISSN
23288957
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3171079939
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Infectious Diseases Society of America. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.