A fatal case of angiostrongyliasis in an 11-month-old infant.
An 11-month-old boy developed flaccid quadriparesis after two months in Fiji, and was transferred to Australia, where a diagnosis of postinfectious myelitis was made. Despite peripheral blood eosinophilia, eosinophils were not detected in the cerebrospinal fluid, and an infective aetiology was not identified. The patient died of progressive bulbar dysfunction. At autopsy, numerous nematodes, identified as Angiostrongylus cantonensis, were seen in vessels of the lungs, brain and spinal cord, associated with pulmonary abscesses and eosinophilic meningitis. A notable feature was the presence of adult nematodes in the lung.
Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, VIC. clairec@nch.edu.au
C M
CM
Cooke-Yarborough
A J
AJ
Kornberg
G G
GG
Hogg
D M
DM
Spratt
J R
JR
Forsyth
D017185:Angiostrongylus cantonensis / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D000818:Animals; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005367:Fiji; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D017206:Strongylida Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology; D014195:Travel