Baylisascariasis as the zoonotic infection of humans is rare, though extremely dangerous due to the ability of the parasite's larvae to migrate into brain tissue and cause damage.

Reported disease has primarily afflicted children and almost all cases were a result of the ingestion of contaminated soil or feces.

The common antihelmintic medicines are able to treat adult worms living in the intestines, but are less effective against migrating larvae.

Larvae tend to migrate to the brain, cause damage, and affect the behaviour of the intermediate host, making it an easier prey for raccoons.

[3] Laboratory and clinical diagnosis can be challenging: there is no commercially available serologic test in the United States, and although identification of larvae in tissue or specimens is confirmatory, this is not always possible or practical.

[7] Distinguishing features of B. procyonis larvae in tissue are its relatively large size (60 μ) and prominent single lateral alae.

Other diagnosis methods include: brain biopsy, neuroimaging, electroencephalography, differential diagnoses among other laboratory tests.

[4] Parents should encourage their children to practice good hygiene; Hand-washing after outdoor play or contact with animals is very important.

Boiling water, steam-cleaning, flaming, or fire are highly effective and are easily accessible means to decontaminate household things or areas.

[4] The paratenic host, however, cannot shed infective eggs, as the larva will not complete its life cycle until it makes its way into a raccoon.

[10] The increase in the raccoon population (and inevitably B. procyonis) has become a major factor for the number of extirpations the Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister) has suffered in recent decades.

The fact that this parasite's eggs are easy to acquire, able to live for years, extremely resistant to many disinfectants, and cause serious infections in humans with poor treatment options could make it a dangerous weapon.

[4] Community water supplies are easily susceptible to contamination due to the lack of filtration and treatment methods to get rid of the eggs.