Imported strongyloidiasis: Data from 1245 cases registered in the +REDIVI Spanish Collaborative Network (2009-2017).

BACKGROUND: Imported strongyloidiasis is increasingly being diagnosed in non-endemic areas. The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological, clinical and microbiological characteristics of patients with imported strongyloidiasis in Spain. METHODOLOGY: This is an observational retrospective study that included all patients diagnosed of strongyloidiasis registered in the +REDIVI Collaborative Network from 2009 to 2017. Demographic, epidemiological and clinical information was collected from the +REDIVI database, and extra information regarding microbiological techniques, treatment and follow-up was requested to participant centers. FINDINGS: Overall, 1245 cases were included. Most of them were immigrants (66.9%), and South America was the most frequent area of origin. Detection of larvae in stool samples was observed in 21.9% of the patients, and serological tests allowed making the diagnosis in the rest of the cases. Eosinophilia was present in 82.2% of cases. Treatment with ivermectin (compared with albendazole) was the most strongly associated factor to achieve the cure (OR 2.34). CONCLUSIONS: Given the long latency of the infection and the risk of developing a severe presentation, screening of S. stercoralis infection should be mandatory in patients coming from or had traveling to endemic areas, especially in those with immunosuppressant conditions.

Multicenter epidemiological and clinical study on imported Chagas diseases in Alicante, Spain.

Recently, there has been an increase in the number of patients with Chagas disease outside of areas that are generally considered endemic. The aim of this investigation is to describe the clinical profile of a series of patients with Chagas disease in Alicante, Spain, which is a province located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. This study was performed at four general hospitals in Alicante between January 2002 and May 2011. A total of 128 patients from seven countries were diagnosed with Trypanosoma cruzi. The main country of origin of these patients was Bolivia (n5101; 78.9%), and the median of age of these patients was 35 years (range: 0­72 years). Four (3.3%) patients were children under 14 years of age, and 81 (63.3%) were female. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to analyze 106 patients, 66.0% of whom demonstrated positive PCR results. Visceral involvement was diagnosed in 26.8%: 24.1% demonstrated cardiac involvement, 0.9% demonstrated gastrointestinal involvement, 0.9% demonstrated cardiac and gastrointestinal involvement, and 0.9% demonstrated involvement of the central nervous system. Syncope was found to be associated with cardiomyopathy (28.0% versus 5.2%) (odds ratio: 6.5; 95% confidence interval: 1.5­27.1). Seventy-six patients received treatment with benznidazole, of whom 57 (75.0%) completed the treatment course without significant adverse events and 17.1% discontinued benznidazole due to adverse events. In total, 50% of patients experienced documented adverse reactions. Among patients with positive PCR results before treatment, all demonstrated negative PCR results following treatment. In conclusion, majority of our patients were female Bolivians immigrants, one of four of our patients demonstrated cardiac involvement, and treatment tolerance was poor. It is important to improve the clinical and epidemiological knowledge of Chagas disease in nonendemic with additional multicenter studies in order to determine the magnitude of this problem and provide improved public health and health resource planning.