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Start free with EleplanCysticercosis
ORPHA:1560Disease
What it is
Cysticercosis is a parasitic infectious disease characterized by cyst formation in the target tissue of Taenia solium (tapeworm) parasite larvae ingested via the feces of a human with a tapeworm (human-to-human fecal-oral transmission) leading to variable clinical manifestations in muscle, the brain, spinal cord, and eyes. Infection of muscle tissue is generally asymptomatic. Cyst development in the brain and spinal cord is known as neurocysticercosis (NCC) and may cause seizures and headache. NCC can follow a serious course and may be life-threatening. Severe cases of cysticercosis are treated with albendazole and anti-inflammatory drugs.
Key facts
- Age of onset
- All ages
- Inheritance
- Not applicable
- Classified as
- Disease
Signs and symptoms
Common30–79%
14- Abnormality of brain morphology
- Abnormal meningeal morphology
- Abnormal skeletal muscle morphology
- Abnormal subarachnoid space morphology
- Arachnoid cyst
- Cerebral calcification
- CSF lymphocytic pleiocytosis
- Functional motor deficit
- Increased anti-parasite IgE antibody levelDiagnostic criterion
- Increased circulating immunoglobulin concentration
- Increased CSF protein concentration
- Intracranial cystic lesion
- SeizureDiagnostic criterion
- Somatic sensory dysfunction
Sometimes5–29%
20- Abnormal eye morphology
- Abnormality of the vertebral column
- Abnormal myocardium morphology
- Abnormal skull morphology
- Atypical behavior
- Calcification of muscles
- Cranial nerve paralysis
- Diplopia
and 12 more in this range
Rare1–4%
14- Abnormality of optic chiasm morphology
- Apathy
- Arterial thrombosis
- Ataxia
- Chorioretinitis
- Confusion
- Dementia
- Dysarthria
and 6 more in this range
These ranges are how often a sign appears across everyone diagnosed, not a prediction for one person — most people have some of these and not others. Orphanet also records findings that are specifically absent in this disease; those are in the data but not listed here.
ICD-10 codes
Cross-references
Orphadata Science: Free access data from Orphanet. © INSERM 1999. Data version 2026-06-23. Available under CC BY 4.0. This is a reference, not medical advice.
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