filarial

[fi-lair-ee-uhl]

adjective

1. belonging to the genus Filaria and allied genera of the family Filariidae.

2. Pathology.,  pertaining to or noting infection by filariae.

   filarial disease.

Word History and Origins

Origin of filarial¹

First recorded in 1880–85; filari(a) + -al ¹

Example Sentences

A patient can become infected with filarial worms through the bite of an infected mosquito, according to a report on the man’s condition, which was published in BMJ Case Reports.

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Another disease that interested Dr. Meyers was onchocerciasis, or river blindness, which is caused by a filarial, or parasitic, worm.

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For example, filarial worms — which cause elephantiasis, a lymphatic disease characterized by enlargement of body parts — can live in a human host eluding our immune system and not causing symptoms for years.

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Some $60 million will go toward the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative, which searches for medicines to help combat sicknesses like pediatric HIV, Chagas disease and filarial diseases.

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Some enterprising filarial worms, having worked their way up into his eyeballs, started making him blind, and he grew very gaunt and miserable.

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