CDC

Two children infected with raccoon roundworm in Los Angeles County in 2024

August 8, 2025

Baylisascariasis, caused by the raccoon roundworm Baylisascaris procyonis, is a potentially severe disease in humans when the parasite invades visceral organs or the central nervous system. In 2024, two unrelated pediatric cases were reported in Los Angeles County, California. The first involved a 14-year-old adolescent with autism and pica; the patient recovered after prompt treatment with albendazole and corticosteroids. The second case, a previously healthy 15-month-old child, experienced delayed diagnosis and treatment, resulting in persistent, severe neurologic sequelae. Both children exhibited encephalopathy, ocular larva migrans, eosinophilic meningitis, and abnormal brain imaging.

Public health investigations identified raccoon feces as the likely source of exposure for the older child, while no source was found for the younger. CDC emphasizes that health care providers should suspect B. procyonis infection in patients with eosinophilic meningoencephalitis, especially in young children or individuals with developmental disabilities or pica, and consider empiric treatment with albendazole. The public should avoid contact with raccoons and their feces and take steps to prevent raccoon activity around homes.

Source:

Vaughan AM, et al. (2025, July 31). CDC: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Baylisascariasis (Raccoon Roundworm Infection) in Two Unrelated Children — Los Angeles County, California, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/74/wr/mm7428a1.htm