[Ocular onchocerciasis in Israel]

Onchocerciasis is a systemic disease caused by the filarial parasite Onchocerca volvulus. It is endemic in Central Africa and South America and causes blindness which is directly related to the severity of the infection. World-wide, there are about 18 million suffering from onchocerciasis, of whom 2 million are blind. The most common symptom is pruritus, which appears early in the disease. Ocular manifestations appear later, and when present, life expectancy is less than 10 years. We present a 31-year-old male Ethiopian immigrant with this disease, which was brought to Israel with the Ethiopian immigration of the past decade. In this population can be found the various manifestations of the disease in all its stages. Patients are treated with oral Ivermectin, once a year, the safest of known medications for this disease. The need for early detection and treatment is emphasized because of the potential for ocular destruction.