Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2013 Aug 20;1(4):135.
doi: 10.4172/2329-9088.1000135.

Bilharzia: Pathology, Diagnosis, Management and Control

David U Olveda  1 , Yuesheng Li  2 , Remigio M Olveda  3 , Alfred K Lam  1 , Thao N P Chau  4 , Donald A Harn  5 , Gail M Williams  6 , Darren J Gray  6 , Allen G P Ross  1
Affiliations

Bilharzia: Pathology, Diagnosis, Management and Control

David U Olveda et al. Trop Med Surg. .

Abstract

More than one billion people travel internationally each year and approximately 100 million to the tropics. Schistosomiasis is a neglected tropical disease caused by trematode blood flukes of the genus Schistosoma. It currently infects over 250 million people worldwide and results in approximately 25 million disability adjusted life years lost. Clinical manifestations depend on the affected organ. Subtle morbidities have also been documented including: growth retardation, anaemia and poor cognitive function in children. While schistosomiasis has been eradicated from Japan and significantly reduced in parts of China and Egypt, transmission in many other regions remains ongoing due to the wide-spread distribution of the intermediate snail host, poor sanitation, lack of health education and decreasing compliance to mass drug administration. Integrated control has significantly reduced the burden of disease in China but considerable financial capital is needed if similar results are to be duplicated elsewhere. Human vaccination is in various stages of development, and once found, will become an integral part of future control. This comprehensive review examines the epidemiology, pathology, diagnosis, clinical management, prevention and control of the disease.

Keywords: Bilharzia; Diagnosis; Management; Neglected tropical disease; Schistosomiasis; Treatment.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Map of the current global distribution of schistosomiasis. Source: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,<http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/yellowbook/2012/chapter-3-infectious-diseases-related-to-travel/schistosomiasis#2696>).
Figure 2
Figure 2
The schistosome life cycle (Ross et al., 2002 [4]).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. World Health Organization Schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminth infections--preliminary estimates of the number of children treated with albendazole or mebendazole. Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2006;81:145–163. - PubMed
    1. WHO Tropical Disease Research (TDR) 2013 Accessed from http://www.who.int/tdr/en/
    1. Steinmann P, Keiser J, Bos R, Tanner M, Utzinger J. Schistosomiasis and water resources development: systematic review, meta-analysis, and estimates of people at risk. Lancet Infect Dis. 2006;6:411–425. - PubMed
    1. Ross AG, Bartley PB, Sleigh AC, Olds GR, Li Y, et al. Schistosomiasis. N Engl J Med. 2002;346:1212–1220. - PubMed
    1. WHO Expert Committee Prevention and control of schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis. World Health Organ Tech Rep Ser. 2002;912:i–vi. 1–57. back cover. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources