infection by filarial worms in the blood and lymph channels, lymph glands, and other tissues, the various species causing skin swellings, blindness, or elephantiasis if untreated.
an infestation with filarial worms of the genus Onchocerca, common in tropical America and Africa, transmitted by black flies, and characterized by nodules under the skin, an itchy rash, eye lesions, and in severe cases, elephantiasis.