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Query: UMLS:C0851341 (infestation)
 10,121 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Doctors recently identified a new form of parasitic worm that was associated with the death of a person with AIDS from the San Francisco Bay area about 1 year ago. The man acquired HIV 5 years ago, but was hospitalized in 1994 with stomach and back pain, weight loss, night sweats and fever. After the worm destroyed parts of the liver and intestines, doctors suspected a new variety of HIV-related cancer. Upon examining the tissue using polymer chain reaction technology, the doctors were able to see that the large amount of scar tissue was caused by the fast growth of the worm. Many questions remain unanswered, such as: how often the new worm causes disease in humans, whether the weakened immune system of a person with AIDS was a factor in susceptibility, where the microbe exists in nature, and whether the infestation can be treated effectively using drugs known to be effective against similar parasites.
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PMID:Lethal new worm discovered in PWA. 1136 26

In developing countries hydatidosis is both a medical and economic problem related to environmental hygiene and healthy veterinary practice. This cestode parasitic infestation, uncommonly involving the nervous system, presents with varied clinical manifestation, at times causing diagnostic dilemmas. Multiple intracranial and spinal hydatidosis is rare. A series of 29 histologically confirmed cases of hydatidosis of neuraxis (21 intracranial and 8 spinal) from South India are presented. Among the 21 cases of intracranial hydatidosis, 12 cases were in pediatric age, while only 1 spinal lesion was noted in a 5-year-old child. The clinical presentation of intracranial lesions was predominantly that of raised intracranial pressure and visual symptoms, while spinal hydatidosis manifested with severe back pain, weakness and sphincter disturbances. The cranial cysts were usually single and uniloculated (12 cases), multiple in 7 and single but multiloculated in 2. In spinal hydatidosis, the cysts are usually multiple and extradural, rare ones being intramedullary and intradural. Based on clinical features and imaging, the differential diagnosis for intracranial lesions were cystic tumors and arachnoid cyst while metastasis and tuberculosis were considered in cases of spinal hydatidosis because of vertebral bony involvement. The majority of the cysts could be surgically resected totally and some were aspirated under control suction and resected. None of the cases had anaphylactic reaction, with no significant post-operative morbidity and no mortality. One intracranial and 2 spinal lesions caused by fertile cysts recurred to undergo repeated surgery.
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PMID:Cestode parasitic infestation: intracranial and spinal hydatid disease--a clinicopathological study of 29 cases from South India. 1655 Jul 44

An outbreak of unexplained and severe kidney disease, "Mesoamerican Nephropathy," in mostly young, male sugar cane workers emerged in Central America in the late 1990's. As a result, an estimated 20,000 individuals have died, to date. Unfortunately, and with great consequence to human life, the etiology of the outbreak has yet to be identified. The sugarcane fields in Chichigalpa, Chinandega, Nicaragua, have been involved in the outbreak, and during our initial investigation, we interviewed case patients who experienced fever, nausea and vomiting, arthralgia, myalgia, headache, neck and back pain, weakness, and paresthesia at the onset of acute kidney disease. We also observed a heavy infestation of rodents, particularly of Sigmodon species, in the sugarcane fields. We hypothesize that infectious pathogens are being shed through the urine and feces of these rodents, and workers are exposed to these pathogens during the process of cultivating and harvesting sugarcane. In this paper, we will discuss the epidemic in the Chichigalpa area, potential pathogens responsible for Mesoamerican Nephropathy, and steps needed in order to diagnose, treat, and prevent future cases from occurring.
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PMID:Mesoamerican nephropathy: a neglected tropical disease with an infectious etiology? 2632 26

A 57-year-old Caucasian female presented to our clinic with her 23-year-old son, who was profoundly autistic. Our patient was convinced that her son had an infestation with fibers and believed that he had developed the condition as a young child. She described the symptoms of the infestation in her son's skin on his behalf, as he was not able to communicate. She identified dietary factors as a causative factor and wanted them removed from his diet. Her son had seborrhoeic dermatitis on examination, with no evidence of an infestation. Our patient later identified that fibers were coming out of her skin also. Her medical history included a road traffic accident resulting in back pain. Blood, urine, and microbiological investigations were normal. She was diagnosed with delusional infestation (DI) by proxy, and was started on risperidone. We present an interesting case of a patient with DI by proxy, in which the delusional beliefs of the mother have been projected onto her son. Issues of safeguarding vulnerable adults are raised in such cases, suggesting the crucial role of the physician in ensuring patient safety. DI by proxy has been reported in patients with children and animals, but we believe this is the first report of DI by proxy involving a vulnerable adult.
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PMID:A patient with delusional infestation by proxy: Issues for vulnerable adults. 3029 80