Monthy Case Studies - 2003
Case #119 - November, 2003
A 23 year-old male went to a local health department and requested screening as he believed he may have become infected with parasites while on a visit to Ecuador in September of this year. He had no symptoms at the time of his visit to the health department. A nurse complied with his request and instructed the man to submit a fecal specimen in 10% formalin for a routine ova and parasites (O & P) examination. An formalin-ethyl acetate (FEA) concentration was performed and the objects in Figures A-C show what was observed in moderate numbers on a wet mount preparation of the sediment (Figure C has Lugol's iodine solution). What is your diagnosis? Based on what criteria?
Acknowledgement: This case kindly provided by the North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health.
Answer to Case #119
The objects seen in this case were artifacts and a diagnosis was given of No Parasites Found (NPF).
More on: Artifacts
Images presented in the monthly case studies are from specimens submitted for diagnosis or archiving. On rare occasions, clinical histories given may be partly fictitious.