What causes Calabar swelling?
Parasites – Loiasis The flies that pass on the parasite breed in certain rain forests of West and Central Africa. Infection with the parasite can also cause repeated episodes of itchy swellings of the body known as Calabar swellings.
What are the signs and symptoms of loiasis?
You may develop an eye worm that crawls across the surface of your eye. Sometimes you may see a worm that crawls under your skin. Less common symptoms include itching all over your body, muscle pain, joint pain, and fatigue.
Does loiasis cause blindness?
Beyond these findings, many complications due to L loa infection have been described, albeit in a minority of cases. Worm migration through the subconjunctiva may progress to invasion of the eye itself by adult worms, causing pain, intraocular inflammation, and even blindness.
What is the meaning of Calabar swelling?
Medical Definition of Calabar swelling : a transient subcutaneous swelling marking the migratory course through the tissues of the adult filarial eye worm of the genus Loa (L. loa) — compare loaiasis.
How do they diagnose loiasis?
Doctors diagnose loiasis by identifying worm larvae (microfilaria) in a sample of blood or seeing an adult worm traveling across the eye. The only drug that kills both adult worms and larvae is diethylcarbamazine.
What does a worm in your eye look like?
the presence of floaters (small spots or lines) in your field of vision. sensitivity to light. crusting around the eyelids and eyelashes. redness and itching around the eye.
How do you get rid of Loa loa?
The treatment of choice is diethylcarbamazine (DEC), which kills the microfilariae and adult worms. Albendazole is sometimes used in patients who are not cured with multiple DEC treatments. It is thought to kill adult worms.
How do you treat eye worms?
Oral or topical medications can treat worms and parasites in the eye. Some of those medications include ivermectin, pyrimethamine, and diethylcarbamazine. Antibiotics may also be given. In some cases, such as river blindness, the worms can be physically removed from the eye.
Where do Loa loa worms live?
Loa loa parasites are found in West and Central Africa. Ten countries have areas where there are high rates of infection (i.e., where more than 40% of the people who live in that area report that they have had eye worm in the past). An estimated 14.4 million people live in these areas of high rates of infection.
What are Calabar swelling and eye worms?
Calabar swellings are localized, non-tender swellings usually found on the arms and legs and near joints. Itching can occur around the area of swelling or can occur all over the body. Eye worm is the visible movement of the adult worm across the surface of the eye. Eye worm can cause eye congestion, itching, pain, and light sensitivity.
Does ivermectin cause subconjunctival loiasis with Calabar swelling?
She took ivermectin (200 µg/kg) as a single dose and suffered from a mild fever and chills for one day. This patient, to the best of our knowledge, is the first case of subconjunctival loiasis with Calabar swelling in Korea. Keywords: Loa, African Eye Worm, Calabar Swelling, Microfilaremia, Ivermectin INTRODUCTION
What is periorbital edema (puffy eyes)?
The area around the eyes is called the eye socket or eye orbit. Sometimes people refer to this condition as periorbital puffiness or puffy eyes. You can have periorbital edema in just one eye or both at the same time. What causes a periorbital edema? The main cause of periorbital edema is inflammation that causes fluid buildup around the eye.
What causes fluid retention around the eyes?
Thyroid problems such as hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism can cause fluid retention in the body, including around the eyes. Periorbital cellulitis is a serious skin condition caused by infection and inflammation of the eyelid and the skin around the eyes.