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Query: UMLS:C0004134 (ataxia)
 15,886 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Cerebral larva migrans was diagnosed histologically in 4 pet rabbits that developed progressive neurologic disease. Larvae of Baylisascaris sp were isolated from brain tissues in 2 rabbits. The clinical syndrome of progressive torticollis and ataxia manifested by these rabbits is commonly associated with otitis and labyrinthitis attributable to bacterial infection; however, the middle ears were normal on radiographic and postmortem examinations. The severe encephalopathy that developed in these rabbits was indicative that just a few Baylisascaris larvae may cause extensive brain injury. During the summer, all of the affected rabbits were maintained outdoors in suburban areas, where raccoons, the final host of B procyonis, are commonly observed. Raccoon feces containing B procyonis eggs constitute a health risk for rabbits, as well as for human beings.
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PMID:Cerebral larva migrans caused by Baylisascaris sp in pet rabbits. 774 48

Baylisascaris procyonis is well recognized as a cause of visceral (VLM), ocular, and neural (NLM) larva migrans in birds and mammals, including man. A study of the prevalence of larva migrans in free-ranging wildlife associated with raccoon latrines as well as a retrospective study of wildlife mortalities with neurological disease was conducted in 2000 in Orange County, California. Eighty-seven birds of 18 species and 64 mammals of 8 species were found to have NLM or VLM or both. NLM clinical signs included convulsions, torticollis, opisthotonus, head-tilts, circling, ataxia, paralysis, and visual defects. NLM lesions were characterized by focally disseminated, frequently linear, "tracklike" areas of parenchymal degeneration with varying degrees of astrocytosis in the white matter of the cerebrum, cerebellum, brain stem, and spinal cord. Larvae were rarely found in these lesions but were rather isolated in the brain-spinal cord parenchyma. At least 1 larva was isolated by digestion from each case of NLM and identified as Baylisascaris sp., most likely B. procyonis. VLM lesions consisted of granulomatous reactions surrounding intact or degenerative larvae in the parenchyma of the liver, kidney, diaphragm, and, occasionally, the lymph nodes. This report broadens the range of species of wild birds and mammals that have been found to be susceptible to larva migrans caused by B. procyonis and reaffirms the importance of raccoon latrine sites as contaminative foci for wildlife.
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PMID:Baylisascaris procyonis (Nematoda: Ascarididae) larva migrans in free-ranging wildlife in Orange County, California. 1205 1

A 17-month-old boy from Vancouver, Canada, presented with a 5-day history of progressive somnolence, ataxia, and torticollis. Additional investigations revealed eosinophilic encephalitis with deep white matter changes on MR imaging. On day 13, serology came back positive for Baylisascaris procyonis antibodies. While prophylaxis after ingestion of soil or materials potentially contaminated with raccoon feces can prevent baylisascariasis, timely treatment can sometimes alter a disastrous outcome. Populations of infected raccoons are propagating globally, but cases of Baylisascaris neural larva migrans have so far only been reported from North America.
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PMID:Baylisascariasis: A young boy with neural larva migrans due to the emerging raccoon round worm. 3084 73