Title: Neglected Parasitic Infections (NPIs) in the United States<br/>Author: Jon Mark Hirshon<br/><a href='http://umem.org/profiles/faculty/96/'>[Click to email author]</a><hr/><p>
        While most infections from parasites are associated with poor communities in low-income countries, there are still some important parasitic infections found in the United States.</p>
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        The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has identified 5 parasitic diseases as priorities for public health action based upon:</p>
<ul>
        <li>
                Number of infected individuals</li>
        <li>
                Severity of illness</li>
        <li>
                Ability to prevent and treat the diseases</li>
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        These are</p>
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        <li>
                <strong>Chagas Disease</strong>
                <ul style="list-style-type:circle;">
                        <li>
                                More than 300,000 people in the U.S. are infected with <em>Trypanosoma cruzi, </em>the parasite that causes Chagas disease</li>
                </ul>
        </li>
        <li>
                <strong>Cysticercosis</strong>
                <ul style="list-style-type:circle;">
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                                At least 1,000 people are hospitalized annually with neurocysticercosis</li>
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        </li>
        <li>
                <strong>Toxocariasis</strong>
                <ul style="list-style-type:circle;">
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                                70 individuals, mostly children are blinded annually from toxocariasis</li>
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        </li>
        <li>
                <strong>Toxoplasmosis</strong>
                <ul style="list-style-type:circle;">
                        <li>
                                More than 60 million individuals carry <em>Toxoplasma gondii, </em>but it usually doesn’t cause symptoms in immunologically competent individuals. </li>
                        <li>
                                However, it is the 2^nd leading cause of death from foodborne illness and it can cause severe problems during pregnancy and in immunocompromised individuals.</li>
                </ul>
        </li>
        <li>
                <strong>Trichomoniasis</strong>
                <ul style="list-style-type:circle;">
                        <li>
                                3% of women in the U.S. are infected with this sexually transmitted parasite</li>
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                                1.1 million people newly infected annually</li>
                </ul>
        </li>
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        <strong>Bottom line:</strong></p>
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        Remember to keep your differential broad and maintain awareness of these generally unusual but important infections.</p>
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         </p>
<fieldset><legend>References</legend>

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        http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/npi/</p>
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