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. 2020 Jun 23;9(6):507.
doi: 10.3390/pathogens9060507.

Clinical Features Associated with Strongyloidiasis in Migrants and the Potential Impact of Immunosuppression: A Case Control Study

Angela Martinez-Pérez  1   2 , Manuel Jesús Soriano-Pérez  3 , Fernando Salvador  4 , Joan Gomez-Junyent  5 , Judith Villar-Garcia  6 , Miguel Santin  5 , Carme Muñoz  7 , Ana González-Cordón  8 , Joaquín Salas-Coronas  3 , Elena Sulleiro  9 , Dolors Somoza  10 , Begoña Treviño  11 , Rosángela Pecorelli  12 , Jaume Llaberia-Marcual  7 , Ana Belén Lozano-Serrano  3 , Llorenç Quinto  2   13 , Jose Muñoz  2 , Ana Requena-Méndez  2   14 , On Behalf Of The Strong-Semtsi Working Group
Affiliations

Clinical Features Associated with Strongyloidiasis in Migrants and the Potential Impact of Immunosuppression: A Case Control Study

Angela Martinez-Pérez et al. Pathogens. .

Abstract

Strongyloides stercoralis is a widely distributed nematode more frequent in tropical areas and particularly severe in immunosuppressed patients. The aim of this study was to determine factors associated with strongyloidiasis in migrants living in a non-endemic area and to assess the response to treatment and follow-up in those diagnosed with the infection. We performed a multicenter case-control study with 158 cases and 294 controls matched 1:2 by a department service. Participants were recruited simultaneously at six hospitals or clinics in Spain. A paired-match analysis was then performed looking for associations and odds ratios in sociodemographic characteristics, pathological background, clinical presentation and analytical details. Cases outcomes after a six-month follow-up visit were also registered and their particularities described. Most cases and controls came from Latin America (63%-47%) or sub-Saharan Africa (26%-35%). The number of years residing in Spain (9.9 vs. 9.8, p = 0.9) and immunosuppression status (30% vs. 36.3%, p = 0.2) were also similar in both groups. Clinical symptoms such as diffuse abdominal pain (21% vs. 13%, p = 0.02), and epigastralgia (29% vs. 18%, p < 0.001); along with a higher eosinophil count (483 vs. 224 cells/mL in cases and controls, p < 0.001) and the mean total Immunoglobulin E (IgE) (354 U/L vs. 157.9 U/L; p < 0.001) were associated with having strongyloidiasis. Finally, 98.2% percent of the cases were treated with ivermectin in different schedules, and 94.5% met the cure criteria at least six months after their first consultation. Abdominal pain, epigastralgia, eosinophilia, increased levels of IgE and Latin American origin remain the main features associated with S. stercoralis infection, although this association is less evident in immunosuppressed patients. The appropriate follow-up time to evaluate treatment response based on serology titers should be extended beyond 6 months if the cure criteria are not achieved.

Keywords: Strongyloides stercoralis; case-control; immunosuppression; migration; risk factors.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Eosinophil count and Strongyloides antibody titers in cases with strongyloidiasis by immunosuppression status. (A): Eosinophils count in patients with strongyloidiasis by immunosuppression status. (B): Strongyloides antibody titers in patients with strongyloidiasis by immunosuppression status
Figure 1
Figure 1
Eosinophil count and Strongyloides antibody titers in cases with strongyloidiasis by immunosuppression status. (A): Eosinophils count in patients with strongyloidiasis by immunosuppression status. (B): Strongyloides antibody titers in patients with strongyloidiasis by immunosuppression status
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