[Parasitic disease of the female genital tract: histopathological aspects]

Abstract

In temperate countries, Trichomonas and Candida are the most frequently found agents in parasitic disease of the female genital tract but usually a surgical step is not required. On the contrary, erratic infectation with Helminths (Enterobius vermicularis, Ascaris, Tapeworm, Echinococcus granulosus) can cause genital or peritoneal lesions and an operation becomes then necessary. Diagnosis is made only a posteriori by histological examination. In countries with endemic Schistosoma infestation, localizations of S. haematobiumn in the vaginal wall, cervix uteri, Fallopian tubes and ovary, and sometimes even pelvic peritoneum predominate by far in the pathology of parasitic disease of the genital tract. Usually latent, such infestations can sometimes cause severe and pseudotumoral lesions, the cause of which, here again, if often detected only by histopathological investigation.