Apparent failure of ultrasonography to detect adult worms of Brugia malayi

Abstract

Adult worms of Wuchereria bancrofti, or rather their characteristic movements (the ‘filarial dance’), can now be detected in the scrotal lymphatics of microfilaraemic males, using ultrasonography. This ability has been used to delineate the lymphatic pathology of bancroftian filariasis, guide the surgical removal of the adult worms and, most importantly, assess the macrofilaricidal effects of antifilarial drugs. In the present study, the first report of the use of ultrasonography in brugian filariasis, 22 men (aged 18–62 years) with 60–2972 (median=370) Brugia malayi microfilariae/ml blood were subjected to ultrasonography using a linear, 7.5-MHz probe. In addition, four other men (aged 19–35 years), with W. bancrofti microfilaraemia [28–524 (median=234) microfilariae/ml], were similarly examined. Adult worms were not detectable in any of the patients with B. malayi parasitaemia but were detected in the scrotal lymphatics of two of the four individuals with W. bancrofti infection. The reasons for the failure to detect adult B. malayi and the limitations of ultrasound as a screening tool are examined. The results highlight the differences between the two species that cause most lymphatic filariasis and the need for rapid development of tools that can be used for the control of brugian lymphatic filariasis.