[Toxocara canis (larva migrans visceralis) from an ophthalmological point of view (author's transl)].

Visceral Larva Migrans (Toxocara canis) is usually a relatively benign disease which is caused by infective second-stage larvae of the common cosmopolitan ascarid of dogs, characterized chiefly by sustained eosinophilia, pulmonary symptoms and hepatomegaly. Its severity varies with the number of larvae in the tissue and the immune or allergic state of the infected individual. The most important aspect of the neurotropic larvae perhaps is its potential as a facilitating agent, for instance, for Virus or Toxoplasma gondii invasion of the central nervous system by destroying the blood-brain barrier. Ocular invasion characteristically occurs after primary infestation, seldom bilaterally. Larvae may present three different ocular lesions: a granulomatosis at the posterior pole (solitary granuloma), a chronic endophthalmitis or peripheral retinal lesions with proliferation. Prognosis regarding visual acuity depends on early diagnosis and larval localization. The author reports on successful therapy with a combination of antibiotics, sulfonamides, prednisolone and vermifuge. The microprecipitation test on living larvae is considered to be superior all serological tests at present but a negative result (at first) does not exclude T. canis invasion (compare case report). LMV syndrome should be ruled out if the patient suffers from cerebral spasms whose cause is unclear.