Testicular swelling due to lymphatic filariasis after brief travel to Haiti

Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2014 Jul;91(1):89-91. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.14-0030. Epub 2014 May 27.

Abstract

After 6 months of a trip to Haiti, a 25-year-old healthy man presented with a 6-week history of a very slow progressive intermittent bilateral testicular pain and swelling. The biopsies in both testicles revealed the presence of a dead filarial parasite. Polymerase chain reaction products of the DNA from the biopsy were shown to have a 100% identity to Wuchereria bancrofti. Despite being uncommon in travelers, this presentation of W. bancrofti highlights the possibility of acquiring W. bancrofti during short-term trips to highly endemic regions of the world (i.e., Haiti).

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Animals
  • Elephantiasis, Filarial / diagnosis
  • Elephantiasis, Filarial / parasitology*
  • Elephantiasis, Filarial / pathology
  • Haiti
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Testis / parasitology*
  • Testis / pathology
  • Travel
  • Wuchereria bancrofti / pathogenicity
  • Wuchereria bancrofti / physiology*