Cell phone-based microscope facilitates safe treatment for river blindness

Re-implementation of an ivermectin treatment strategy for river blindness in Cameroon, Africa, is now possible with the use of the LoaScope, which quantifies Loa loa microfilariae in peripheral blood.
Mass distribution of ivermectin was the primary strategy to eliminate lymphatic filariasis and onchocerciasis (river blindness) in Cameroon until 1999 when it was discovered that administration of this drug was associated with fatalities in those with L. loa infection.
In this study, the LoaScope, a small microscope that incorporates a cell phone, was used to quantify L. loa microfilariae in

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