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Case Reports
. 2023 Apr 18;2023(4):rjad188.
doi: 10.1093/jscr/rjad188. eCollection 2023 Apr.

Schistosomal appendicitis: a rare cause of a common surgical condition

Jia Xi Julian Li  1 , Howard Shihao Fan  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Schistosomal appendicitis: a rare cause of a common surgical condition

Jia Xi Julian Li et al. J Surg Case Rep. .

Abstract

Despite the prevalence of schistosomiasis across the world, appendicitis secondary to schistosomiasis is a rarely encountered presentation even in endemic areas, let alone in developed Western countries. We report a case of a 34-year-old male in Australia with acute appendicitis and subsequent histopathology, demonstrating the presence of schistosome ova. The case highlights the difficulties in pre-operative diagnosis of this entity and the importance of its recognition for the practising surgeon, especially in the developed world, where this rare condition may be encountered because of changing global travel and migration patterns.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
CT of the abdomen demonstrating a 9.9-mm dilated appendix.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Histology slides of the appendix specimen; (A) (H&E stain, 20× magnification) features of transmural inflammatory infiltrate and serositis consistent with appendicitis and round calcified deposits within the appendiceal wall and mesoappendix; (B) (H&E stain, 400× magnification) amorphous, round, blue-black calcified deposits representing Schistosoma ova; (C) (modified Ziehl-Neelsen stain, 200× magnification) red-brown appearance of the Schistosoma ova shell.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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