Population Screening for Urine Antigens to Detect Asymptomatic Subarachnoid Neurocysticercosis: A Pilot Study in Northern Peru
Ellen McCleery, Samantha E. Allen, Luz M. Moyano, Ricardo Gamboa, Percy Vilchez, Claudio Muro, Yesenia Castillo, Pierre Dorny, Héctor H. Garcı́a, Seth E. O’Neal, for the Cysticercosis Working Group in Peru
Abstract
. We performed a pilot study of noninvasive screening for SANCC in two endemic villages in northern Peru using a urine antigen screen followed by brain magnetic resonance imaging for participants with elevated levels of antigen. Among the 978 participants screened, we identified eight individuals with SANCC, many of whom were asymptomatic. This represents a minimum prevalence of 0.8% of SANCC, a level higher than expected based on prior studies, and a positive predictive value of 62% for our novel urine screening test. Future studies should confirm whether early detection and management improve clinical outcomes.