Words and Worms: The Nosology of Strongyloidiasis

Strongyloidiasis impacts millions of people on several continents. Although chronic infection is often subclinical, select forms of immune dysregulation predispose patients to severe clinical manifestations resulting from acceleration of the nematode's autoinfective cycle. The terms "hyperinfection syndrome" and "disseminated strongyloidiasis" commonly refer to these disease states; however, contemporary usage is not uniform. We herein review the origins of terms related to the nosology of strongyloidiasis and highlight important mechanisms of disease pathogenesis that make untreated strongyloidiasis highly relevant to contemporary medicine.