title: Human subcutaneous dirofilariasis caused by Dirofilaria immitis in a Greek adult.
abstract: Human dirofilariasis is a zoonotic infection caused by worms of the genus Dirofilaria. Most reported cases involve Dirofilaria repens, and D. immitis infection has been rarely reported. Canines act as a reservoir for the infection, while human infections are sporadic. Human dirofilariasis has been widely reported in South Europe; however, the worldwide distribution constantly changes. We herein report an extremely rare case of subcutaneous trunk dirofilariasis in a 45-year-old immunosuppressed woman, caused by D. immitis. The parasitic infection was detected using ultrasonography. The infection was confirmed by a polymerase chain reaction-based method and was attributed to D. immitis.
authors.affiliation: First Surgical Department, 417 NIMTS (Veterans' Hospital of Athens), Greece.
authors.forename: Evangelos
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Falidas
authors.affiliation: First Surgical Department, 417 NIMTS (Veterans' Hospital of Athens), Greece. Electronic address: drsgourgiotis@tiscali.co.uk.
authors.forename: Stavros
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gourgiotis
authors.affiliation: Microbiology Department, 417 NIMTS (Veterans' Hospital of Athens), Greece.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ivopoulou
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, 417 NIMTS (Veterans' Hospital of Athens), Greece.
authors.forename: Ioannis
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Koutsogiannis
authors.affiliation: First Surgical Department, 417 NIMTS (Veterans' Hospital of Athens), Greece.
authors.forename: Christianna
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Oikonomou
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Ioannina University Hospital, Ioannina, Greece.
authors.forename: Konstantinos
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Vlachos
authors.affiliation: First Surgical Department, 417 NIMTS (Veterans' Hospital of Athens), Greece.
authors.forename: Constantinos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Villias
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004183:Dirofilaria immitis / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004184:Dirofilariasis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D018510:RNA, Helminth / Q000235:genetics; D012335:RNA, Ribosomal / Q000235:genetics; D012876:Skin Diseases, Parasitic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery
chemical_list: D018510:RNA, Helminth; D012335:RNA, Ribosomal; C075526:RNA, ribosomal, 12S
keywords: Dirofilaria immitis; Dirofilariasis; Human; Worm; Zoonotic infection