Tungiasis in North America: A report of 2 cases in internationally adopted children

Fein, Howard; Naseem, Shahzad; Witte, David P.; Garcia, Victor F.; Lucky, Anne W.; Staat, Mary Allen

doi:10.1067/mpd.2001.118530

Cited by 26 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…wild or domestic mammals: indeed, these sand fleas are closely linked to humans and their rearing activities. Beside the African colonization event (Hoepli 1963;Connor 1976), several reports describe further accidental introductions of T. penetrans, even in temperate countries, through infected humans coming back or emigrating from endemic areas (D'antuono et al 1990;Fein et al 2001;Heukelbach et al 2001;Caputo et al 2005). The movement of humans and domestic animals across Andes might be and have been an important factor in maintaining and/or increasing the gene flow.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic variability of Tunga penetrans (Siphonaptera, Tungidae) sand fleas across South America and Africa

et al. 2006

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Tunga penetrans is a widely distributed sand flea, infecting men and domestic animals. It originated in South America, but it is now also endemic of Sub-Saharan Africa due to a recent accidental introduction. Previous genetic analyses indicated a very limited variability in the Ecuadorian populations; on the other hand, samples from Madagascar resulted to be genetically isolated. To better examine the genetic variability of T. penetrans, a wider sampling was analysed for mitochondrial (cytochrome oxidase II) and nuclear (ribosomal internal transcribed spacer [ITS] 2) DNA sequences. The mitochondrial marker confirms the low genetic variability, with few haplotypes characterizing the majority of individuals from different populations. Haplotype distribution is in agreement with a recent colonization of Africa and with a rapid spreading across this continent. Moreover, a consistent gene flow between the Pacific and Atlantic South American populations emerges, possibly due to human and/or animal cross-Andean dispersal. On the other hand, the ITS2 marker depicts a sharply diverging pattern with samples collected in Ecuador unequivocally distinguished from the Brazilian and African ones. On the whole, taking into account also the molecular features of the marker used, data here presented are better interpreted in the light of a high dispersal ability of T. penetrans, probably reducing the phylogeographic signal.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic variability of Tunga penetrans (Siphonaptera, Tungidae) sand fleas across South America and Africa

et al. 2006

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“…The initial lesion is usually an erythematous papule with a central black dot and may be painful and pruritic. The flea enlarges from 1 mm to 1 cm while producing eggs, resulting in an area of swelling with a central orifice or ulceration [59]. The eggs exit through the orifice, fall to the ground, and hatch into larvae.…”

Section: Tungiasismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is endemic in Central and South America, Africa, and Central and East Asia, and cases have been reported in travelers to these areas. Autochthonous tungiasis was reported in an Italian lifeguard [58], and tungiasis (complicated by osteomyelitis and cellulitis) has been documented in children who were adopted from Liberia [59].…”

Section: Tungiasismentioning

confidence: 99%

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Dermatologic infectious diseases in international travelers

Wilson

Chen²

2004

Curr Infect Dis Rep

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Skin lesions provide an important clue to the diagnoses of many infections in returned travelers. New information related to epidemiology, recognition, diagnosis, or management is described for the systemic infections--dengue fever, several of the rickettsial infections, African trypanosomiasis, and coccidioidomycosis. Many pathogens cause focal skin findings. Recent findings are presented for cutaneous leishmaniasis, Buruli ulcer, gnatho-stomiasis, cutaneous larva migrans, myiasis, tungiasis, and scabies. This paper describes the most common skin problems in returning travelers and outlines the types of infections that cause skin lesions, as defined by morphologic characteristics.

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“…1 Both male and female fleas are hematophagous. 2 The male does not burrow into the host and dies after copulation. However, the female flea burrows into the host's epidermis, where it can grow as large as 1 cm as its fertilized eggs mature.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%