Liver abscess caused by Ascaris lumbricoides: case report

Abstract

SUMMARYA case is reported of a woman who lived in a rural area with a chronic illness that consisted of weight loss and abdominal pain in the epigastrium and upper right quadrant. The initial diagnosis was a mass in the liver, which was later, demonstrated, both by direct and histological examination, to be an abscess caused by Ascaris lumbricoides. Eggs of Ascaris lumbricoides and abundant CharcotLeyden Crystals were found.

Intrahepatic Ascariasis Leading to Liver Abscess

“…Despite the high incidence of intestinal ascariasis in underdeveloped countries ectopic forms are still rare and can affect appendix, pancreatic duct and bile duct hepatic parenchyma [7][8][9]. Eggs fragments or parasites present in the bile ducts can enucleating yield calculations and granulomatous hepatitis trigger the production of foreign body granulomas when housed in the liver parenchyma [6,10].…”

Liver Abscess Secondary to Ascaris Lumbricoides: Case Report

“…The tendency of Ascaris to enter all orifi ces allow it to carry gut fl ora along with it in the biliary three, and people with massive worm infestation in duodenum are more prone to get it. The association with bacterial fl ora, especially E. Coli leads to cholangitis, and it can invade the hepatic parenchyma leading to local infl ammation, necrosis and abscess formation, in some cases favored by death worms in the parenchyma [2,7]. Symptoms use to be very unspecifi c, including right upper quadrant pain, tenderness and fever, this last the more common presented.…”

“…Liver abscess is classically related with Entamoeba histolytica, followed by pyogenic bacteria and sometimes caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis [2]. The liver abscess caused by Ascaris lumbricoides is extremely rare, especially in adults, with no distinctive clinical features that guide us to differential diagnosis against other causes of liver abscess, constituting only 3.8% of all hepatobiliary complications associated with this parasite [3].…”

Significance of Charcot Leyden crystals in liver cytology—A case report

“…3 Parasitic liver abscesses are also known, which occur due to visceral larva migrans, ascaris lumbricodes, fasciola species, toxocara species, etc. Infectious liver abscesses have a diverse etiology, the most common being amoebic followed by pyogenic liver abscess.…”