Abstract
To determine the current status of lymphatic filariasis (LF) in Korea. Epidemiological surveys between 2002 and 2006 in areas where LF was previously endemic: remote and coastal areas Jeollanam-do, Gyeongsangnam-do, and Jeju-do, and inland Gyeongsangbuk-do. We took night blood smears from 9426 people for microfilaria testing and assayed samples from 3049 children (10- to 13-year-olds) and 1526 adults for Brugia malayi antibodies. We found two cases (0.01%) with low microfilaria density in their peripheral blood (1-2/20 mul) on the remote island of Jeollanam-do in the southern part of the Korean peninsula. These patients, males over 60-years old, were treated with diethylcarbamazine (DEC). None of the 4575 people surveyed tested positive for specific B. malayi antibodies. Lymphatic filariasis appears to have been eliminated in Korea.
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