Neuroinvasive Onchocerca lupi Infection in a Ten-Year-Old Girl

Authors

Dorothy Bowers Wu, The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM, USA
Brandon Ko, The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Albuquerque, NM, USA
Gloria Lopez Hernandez, The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Critical Care, Albuquerque, NM, USA
James Botros, The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Department of Neurosurgery, Albuquerque, NM, USA
Heather Spader, The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Department of Neurosurgery, Albuquerque, NM, USA
Sarah Sapp, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Parasitic Diseases and Malaria, Atlanta, GA, USA
Yvonne Qvarnstrom, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Parasitic Diseases and Malaria, Atlanta, GA, USA
Christopher D. Paddock, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, Atlanta, GA, USA
Paul T. Cantey, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Parasitic Diseases and Malaria, Atlanta, GA, USA
Walter Dehority, The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Infectious Diseases, Albuquerque, NM, USA

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-5-2022

Abstract

The nematode Onchocerca lupi is an emerging human pathogen. Though its life cycle is not well studied, it likely infects humans after a bite from a black fly vector, which in turn acquires infective microfilariae from an infected canid. These microfilariae mature into an infective larval stage within the fly. Among six reported cases in the United States, five involved children, and all occurred in the southwest. In this report, we present a case of O. lupi infection with cervical spine invasion in a healthy 10-year-old girl. She presented with five months of neurological symptoms from a rural and medically underserved area, highlighting a need for clinical vigilance in such settings for this emerging infectious threat in the American southwest.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/9773058

Recommended Citation

Bowers Wu, Dorothy; Brandon Ko; Gloria Lopez Hernandez; James Botros; Heather Spader; Sarah Sapp; Yvonne Qvarnstrom; Christopher D. Paddock; Paul T. Cantey; and Walter Dehority. "Neuroinvasive Onchocerca lupi Infection in a Ten-Year-Old Girl." (2022). doi:https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/9773058.