Résumé
Epilepsy and onchocerciasis (river blindness) constitute serious public health problems in several tropical countries. There are four main mechanisms that might explain a relationship between these two diseases: (i) the presence of
Onchocerca volvulus in the central nervous system; (ii) the pathogenicity of various
O. volvulus strains; (iii) immunological mechanisms involving cross-reactive immunization or cytokine production during infection; and (iv) the triggering role of insomnia due to itching.