High Prevalence of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis-Endemic Area in Mvolo County, South Sudan: A Door-To-Door Survey
In June 2020, a door-to-door household survey was conducted in Mvolo County, an onchocerciasis-endemic area in South Sudan. A total of 2357 households containing 15,699 individuals agreed to participate in the study. Of these, 5046 (32.1%, 95% CI: 31.4–32.9%) had skin itching and 445 (2.8%, 95% CI:...
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doaj-6f8a1e5a598a4306a5c2d925212212f02021-06-01T00:01:42ZengMDPI AGPathogens2076-08172021-05-011059959910.3390/pathogens10050599High Prevalence of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis-Endemic Area in Mvolo County, South Sudan: A Door-To-Door SurveyStephen Raimon0Alfred Dusabimana1Gasim Abd-Elfarag2Samuel Okaro3Jane Y. Carter4Charles R. Newton5Makoy Yibi Logora6Robert Colebunders7Amref Health Africa, Juba P.O. Box 410, South SudanGlobal Health Institute, University of Antwerp, Kinsbergen Centrum, Doornstraat 331, 2610 Antwerp, BelgiumGlobal Child Health Group, Department of Paediatrics and Department of Global Health Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, 1105 BP Amsterdam, The NetherlandsAmref Health Africa, Juba P.O. Box 410, South SudanAmref Health Africa Headquarters, Nairobi P.O. Box 30125, KenyaDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7JX, UKNeglected Tropical Diseases Unit, Ministry of Health, Juba P.O. Box 410, South SudanGlobal Health Institute, University of Antwerp, Kinsbergen Centrum, Doornstraat 331, 2610 Antwerp, BelgiumIn June 2020, a door-to-door household survey was conducted in Mvolo County, an onchocerciasis-endemic area in South Sudan. A total of 2357 households containing 15,699 individuals agreed to participate in the study. Of these, 5046 (32.1%, 95% CI: 31.4–32.9%) had skin itching and 445 (2.8%, 95% CI: 2.6–3.1%) were blind. An epilepsy screening questionnaire identified 813 (5.1%) persons suspected of having epilepsy. Of them, 804 (98.9%) were seen by a medical doctor, and in 798 (98.1%) the diagnosis of epilepsy was confirmed. The overall epilepsy prevalence was 50.8/1000 (95% CI: 47.6–54.4/1000), while the prevalence of nodding syndrome was 22.4/1000 (95% CI: 20.1–24.9/1000). Younger age, being male, skin itching, blindness, and living in a neighbourhood or village close to the Naam River were risk factors for epilepsy. The annual incidence of epilepsy was 82.8/100,000 (95% CI: 44.1–141.6/100,000). Among children 7–9 years old without epilepsy, 34% were Ov16 seropositive, suggesting high ongoing <i>Onchocerca volvulus</i> transmission, but only 41.9% of them took ivermectin during the last mass distribution. In conclusion, a high prevalence and incidence of epilepsy was observed in Mvolo, South Sudan. Strengthening of the onchocerciasis elimination programme is urgently needed in order to prevent epilepsy in this region.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/10/5/599onchocerciasis<i>Onchocerca volvulus</i>epilepsynodding syndromeprevalenceivermectin |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Stephen Raimon Alfred Dusabimana Gasim Abd-Elfarag Samuel Okaro Jane Y. Carter Charles R. Newton Makoy Yibi Logora Robert Colebunders |
spellingShingle |
Stephen Raimon Alfred Dusabimana Gasim Abd-Elfarag Samuel Okaro Jane Y. Carter Charles R. Newton Makoy Yibi Logora Robert Colebunders High Prevalence of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis-Endemic Area in Mvolo County, South Sudan: A Door-To-Door Survey Pathogens onchocerciasis <i>Onchocerca volvulus</i> epilepsy nodding syndrome prevalence ivermectin |
author_facet |
Stephen Raimon Alfred Dusabimana Gasim Abd-Elfarag Samuel Okaro Jane Y. Carter Charles R. Newton Makoy Yibi Logora Robert Colebunders |
author_sort |
Stephen Raimon |
title |
High Prevalence of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis-Endemic Area in Mvolo County, South Sudan: A Door-To-Door Survey |
title_short |
High Prevalence of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis-Endemic Area in Mvolo County, South Sudan: A Door-To-Door Survey |
title_full |
High Prevalence of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis-Endemic Area in Mvolo County, South Sudan: A Door-To-Door Survey |
title_fullStr |
High Prevalence of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis-Endemic Area in Mvolo County, South Sudan: A Door-To-Door Survey |
title_full_unstemmed |
High Prevalence of Epilepsy in an Onchocerciasis-Endemic Area in Mvolo County, South Sudan: A Door-To-Door Survey |
title_sort |
high prevalence of epilepsy in an onchocerciasis-endemic area in mvolo county, south sudan: a door-to-door survey |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Pathogens |
issn |
2076-0817 |
publishDate |
2021-05-01 |
description |
In June 2020, a door-to-door household survey was conducted in Mvolo County, an onchocerciasis-endemic area in South Sudan. A total of 2357 households containing 15,699 individuals agreed to participate in the study. Of these, 5046 (32.1%, 95% CI: 31.4–32.9%) had skin itching and 445 (2.8%, 95% CI: 2.6–3.1%) were blind. An epilepsy screening questionnaire identified 813 (5.1%) persons suspected of having epilepsy. Of them, 804 (98.9%) were seen by a medical doctor, and in 798 (98.1%) the diagnosis of epilepsy was confirmed. The overall epilepsy prevalence was 50.8/1000 (95% CI: 47.6–54.4/1000), while the prevalence of nodding syndrome was 22.4/1000 (95% CI: 20.1–24.9/1000). Younger age, being male, skin itching, blindness, and living in a neighbourhood or village close to the Naam River were risk factors for epilepsy. The annual incidence of epilepsy was 82.8/100,000 (95% CI: 44.1–141.6/100,000). Among children 7–9 years old without epilepsy, 34% were Ov16 seropositive, suggesting high ongoing <i>Onchocerca volvulus</i> transmission, but only 41.9% of them took ivermectin during the last mass distribution. In conclusion, a high prevalence and incidence of epilepsy was observed in Mvolo, South Sudan. Strengthening of the onchocerciasis elimination programme is urgently needed in order to prevent epilepsy in this region. |
topic |
onchocerciasis <i>Onchocerca volvulus</i> epilepsy nodding syndrome prevalence ivermectin |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/10/5/599 |
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