Home > Encyclopedia of Medicine > Filariasis

Definition

Filiariasis is the name for a group of tropical diseases caused by various thread-like parasitic round worms (nematodes) and their larvae. The larvae transmit the disease to humans through a mosquito bite. Filariasis is characterized by fever, chills, headache, and skin lesions in the early stages and, if untreated, can progress to include gross enlargement of the limbs and genitalia in a condition called elephantiasis.

Description

Approximately 170 million people in the tropical and subtropical areas of southeast Asia, South America, Africa, and the islands of the Pacific are affected by this debilitating parasitic disease. While...