A Case of Pulmonary Nodular Schistosomiasis

Abstract

Bilharzia is a parasitic infection particularly affecting the digestive tract and urinary tract. Lung involvement is rarely reported. We report a case of pulmonary bilharzioma of nodular type surrounded by ground glass opacities diagnosed on CT-scan and associated with a hepatic nodule, in a 41-year-old woman. The disappearance of the pulmonary nodule under antischistosomal treatment made it possible to make the diagnosis a posteriori without going through an invasive process.

Keywords: Antibilharzien; CT scan; Ground glass opacities; Nodule; Pulmonary bilharzioma.

Figure 1.

Axial CT scan images of the thorax, in parenchymal window (a) and in mediastinal window, with contrast media (b) showing a solid nodule surrounded by an area of ground glass in the right apico-ventral subpleural area, behind a costal arch.

Figure 2.

Axial CT scan images of the thorax at three months of antischistosomal treatment (a) showing the marked reduction in the size of the nodule and the disappearance of the ground glass areas, and at six months of treatment (b) showing the disappearance of the nodule.

Figure 3.

Abdominal CT scan images passing through the liver, showing a lowdensity subcapsular nodule (a), with peripheral and centripetal enhancement in arterial phase (b) and homogenization in portal phase (c). Sagittal ultrasound section of the right liver passing through segment VI showing the hyperechoic aspect of the nodule (d).