[Cysticercosis contracted in metropolitan France]

Abstract

Introduction: All cases of cysticercosis diagnosed in France are thought to be imported. Our case report concerns a 48-year-old man who has never left Europe, in whom we diagnosed subcutaneous cysticercosis.

Case: Histologic examination of the subcutaneous nodule extracted from this patient's abdominal wall showed cysticercosis. He has never left Europe. Various imaging techniques showed no other localizations of this infection. Neither he nor any members of his family carried adult Taenia solium.

Discussion: We present an exceptional case of autochthonous cysticercosis. It is unlikely to be a larva of Taenia solium, since this adult tapeworm has not been seen in mainland France for a very long time. On the other hand, Taenia crassiceps cestodes parasitize the digestive tract of the fox in Auvergne and may occasionally cause cysticercosis in humans.