Title
Urine antigen detection for the diagnosis of human neurocysticercosis
Date Issued
01 January 2009
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Publisher(s)
American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Abstract
Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is a major cause of seizures and epilepsy. Diagnosis is based on brain imaging, supported by immunodiagnosis in serum or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Lumbar puncture is invasive and painful. Blood sampling is slightly painful and poorly accepted. Urine antigen detection has been used for other parasites and tried in NCC with suboptimal performance. We used a monoclonal antibody-based ELISA to detect Taenia solium antigens in urine from 87 Peruvian neurocysticercosis patients (viable cysts, N = 34; subarachnoid cysticercosis, N = 10; degenerating parasites, N - 7; calcified lesions, N = 36) and 32 volunteers from a non-endemic area of Peru. Overall sensitivity of urine antigen detection for viable parasites was 92%, which decreased to 62.5% in patients with a single cyst. Most patients (30/36,83%) with only calcified cysticercosis were urine antigen negative. Antigen levels in paired serum/urine samples (evaluated in 19 patients) were strongly correlated. Non-invasive urine testing for T. solium antigens provides a useful alternative for NCC diagnosis. Copyright © 2009 by The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
Start page
379
End page
383
Volume
80
Issue
3
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Parasitología
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-62949102201
PubMed ID
Source
American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
ISSN of the container
00029637
Sponsor(s)
Fogarty International Center D43TW001140, D43TW006581
Sources of information: Directorio de Producción Científica Scopus