Purpose: To describe a case of human conjunctival dirofialirosis by Dirofilaria immitis. Patient/Methods: A 51 year-old man from the Emilia-Romagna region of north-eastern Italy referred for ocular foreign body sensation in his right eye. A slight swelling of the bulbar conjunctiva was observed. A live, whitish, 10 cm-long nematode was extracted from the subconjunctival space. Results: Histology revealed typical features of a filarial nematode belonging to the genus Dirofilaria sp. Molecular analysis with Polymerase Chain Reaction confirmed that the extracted nematode was a male of Dirofilaria immitis. The removal of the parasite lead to complete resolution of symptoms. Conclusions: Ocular human dirofilariosis due to infection with the filarial nematode D. immitis is extremely rare, but should be considered in humans living in Italian endemic areas.

A case of human conjunctival dirofilariosis by Dirofilaria immitis in Italy / Avellis, Fo; Kramer, Laura Helen; Mora, Paolo; Bartolino, A; Benedetti, P; Rivasi, F.. - In: VECTOR BORNE AND ZOONOTIC DISEASES. - ISSN 1530-3667. - 11:(2011), pp. 451-452. [10.1089/vbz.2010.0067]

A case of human conjunctival dirofilariosis by Dirofilaria immitis in Italy

KRAMER, Laura Helen;MORA, Paolo;
2011-01-01

Abstract

Purpose: To describe a case of human conjunctival dirofialirosis by Dirofilaria immitis. Patient/Methods: A 51 year-old man from the Emilia-Romagna region of north-eastern Italy referred for ocular foreign body sensation in his right eye. A slight swelling of the bulbar conjunctiva was observed. A live, whitish, 10 cm-long nematode was extracted from the subconjunctival space. Results: Histology revealed typical features of a filarial nematode belonging to the genus Dirofilaria sp. Molecular analysis with Polymerase Chain Reaction confirmed that the extracted nematode was a male of Dirofilaria immitis. The removal of the parasite lead to complete resolution of symptoms. Conclusions: Ocular human dirofilariosis due to infection with the filarial nematode D. immitis is extremely rare, but should be considered in humans living in Italian endemic areas.
2011
A case of human conjunctival dirofilariosis by Dirofilaria immitis in Italy / Avellis, Fo; Kramer, Laura Helen; Mora, Paolo; Bartolino, A; Benedetti, P; Rivasi, F.. - In: VECTOR BORNE AND ZOONOTIC DISEASES. - ISSN 1530-3667. - 11:(2011), pp. 451-452. [10.1089/vbz.2010.0067]
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11381/2343149
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