TY - JOUR AU - O’Neal, Seth AU - Townes, John AU - Wilkins, Patricia AU - Noh, John AU - Lee, Deborah AU - Rodriguez, Silvia AU - Garcia, Hector AU - Stauffer, William T1 - Seroprevalence of Antibodies against Taenia solium Cysticerci among Refugees Resettled in United States T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 2012 VL - 18 IS - 3 SP - 431 SN - 1080-6059 AB - Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is a disease caused by central nervous system infection by the larval stage of the pork tapeworm, Taenia solium. In developing countries, NCC is a leading cause of adult-onset epilepsy. Case reports of NCC are increasing among refugees resettled to the United States and other nations, but the underlying prevalence among refugee groups is unknown. We tested stored serum samples from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Migrant Serum Bank for antibodies against T. solium cysts by using the enzyme-linked immunoelectrotransfer blot. Seroprevalence was high among all 4 populations tested: refugees from Burma (23.2%), Lao People’s Democratic Republic (18.3%), Bhutan (22.8%), and Burundi (25.8%). Clinicians caring for refugee populations should suspect NCC in patients with seizure, chronic headache, or unexplained neurologic manifestations. Improved understanding of the prevalence of epilepsy and other associated diseases among refugees could guide recommendations for their evaluation and treatment before, during, and after resettlement. KW - cysticercosis KW - neurocysticercosis KW - Taenia solium KW - tapeworm KW - refugees KW - Bhutan KW - Myanmar KW - Burma KW - Burundi KW - Laos KW - Hmong KW - epidemiology KW - screening KW - parasites KW - cysticerci KW - United States DO - 10.3201/eid1803.111367 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/18/3/11-1367_article ER - End of Reference