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Lookup NU author(s): Professor Michael Goodfellow
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
Mycetoma is a tropical disease which is caused by a taxonomically diverse range of actinomycetes (actinomycetoma) and fungi (eumycetoma). The disease was only recently listed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a neglected tropical disease (NTD). This recognition is the direct result of a meeting held in Geneva on February 1, 2013, in which experts on the disease from around the world met to identify the key research priorities needed to combat mycetoma. The areas that need to be addressed are highlighted here. The initial priority is to establish the incidence and prevalence of the disease in regions where mycetoma is endemic, prior to determining the primary reservoirs of the predominant causal agents and their mode of transmission to susceptible individuals in order to establish novel interventions that will reduce the impact of the disease on individuals, families, and communities. Critically, economical, reliable, and effective methods are required to achieve early diagnosis of infections and consequential improved therapeutic outcomes. Molecular techniques and serological assays were considered the most promising in the development of novel diagnostic tools to be used in endemic settings. Improved strategies for treating eumycetoma and actinomycetoma are also considered.
Author(s): van de Sande WWJ, Maghoub E, Fahal AH, Goodfellow M, Welsh O, Zijlstra E
Publication type: Review
Publication status: Published
Journal: PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases
Year: 2014
Volume: 8
Issue: 3
Online publication date: 27/03/2014
ISSN (print): 1935-2727
ISSN (electronic): 1935-2735
Publisher: PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0002667
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002667
