Premium
A CASE OF SEVERE SCHISTOSOMIASIS ( SCHISTOSOMA MANSONI ) IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Author(s) -
Charters A. D.,
Jackson J. Muir,
Vivian A. B.
Publication year - 1969
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1969.tb105731.x
Subject(s) - schistosomiasis , schistosoma mansoni , portal hypertension , medicine , schistosoma , eosinophilia , immunology , surgery , helminths , cirrhosis
A case of severe schistosomiasis due to Schistosoma mansoni is described. No previous record of proven S. mansoni infection in Western Australia could be found. The possibility of schistosomiasis should be borne in mind in a country, such as Australia, which is receiving a steady flow of new migrants from tropical regions. There was a very long latent period between infection and the manifestation of symptoms. The longevity of the adult worm was estimated as being at least 16 years. The patient initially presented for investigation of anæmia associated with hepato‐splenomegaly. The finding of gross eosinophilia in a bone‐marrow biopsy prompted investigation for a parasitic ætiology. Ova of S. mansoni were discovered in the fæces. Severe hypersplenism and portal hypertension, together with hepatocellular deficiency, raised a problem regarding the priority of medical or surgical treatment. Splenectomy was performed and followed by a course of antimony tartrate. Treatment succeeded in correcting the portal venous hypertension, eradicating the infestation and resolving the hæmatological abnormalities.