What question did this study set out to answer?

Investigate the relationship between loiasis and malaria in a rural Gabonese population.

February 9, 20260 citationsOpen Access

There Is No Association Between Loiasis and Malaria: Findings from a Secondary Analysis of a Cross-Sectional Survey in Rural Gabon

JWJacob WernerUniversität Hamburg RZRella Zoleko-ManegoUniversität Hamburg GMGhyslain Mombo-NgomaCentre de Recherche Médicales de Lambaréné

Key Points

Investigate the relationship between loiasis and malaria in a rural Gabonese population.
Conducted secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional survey from 2015-2016
Enrolled 947 participants of all ages
Performed crude and adjusted odds ratio analyses to assess the association between the two diseases.
Initial unadjusted analysis suggested a protective association for malaria with an OR of 0.67
Adjusted analysis revealed no significant association with an OR of 1.31
Findings indicate that differing age demographics explain the initial observed association.

Abstract

Loiasis exists in regions where malaria is highly endemic, yet few studies have investigated their association as concomitant infectious diseases. Secondary data analysis from a cross-sectional survey conducted in Gabon (2015–2016) was performed to assess the association between malaria and loiasis. A total of 947 participants of all ages were enrolled in the original study. In crude analyses, malaria showed a seemingly protective association with loiasis, manifesting in an odds ratio (OR) of 0.67 (95% CI: 0.45 to 1.01; p = 0.0521). This borderline association disappeared completely after adjustment for confounders (adjusted OR: 1.31; 95% CI: 0.81 to 2.11; p = 0.276), particularly age. The apparent crude protective association is therefore likely explained by the different epidemiological distribution of both diseases according to age rather than a true biological interaction. Malaria predominantly occurred in children and loiasis mainly in older individuals. Findings of this study do not support an association between malaria and loiasis in this setting.

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