Wuchereria bancrofti: Unusual Presentation as Pancytopenia

J Clin Diagn Res. 2016 Jul;10(7):ED05-6. doi: 10.7860/JCDR/2016/18960.8084. Epub 2016 Jul 1.

Abstract

Wuchereria bancrofti is an endemic filarial nematode spread by a mosquito vector. The clinical manifestations vary from asymptomatic microfilaremeia to lymhoedema. We report two cases of microfilaria of Wuchereria bancrofti in bone marrow presenting as peripheral pancytopenia. The patient did not have any classical features of lymphoedema or elephantiasis. The diagnostic demonstration of microfilaria with unusual presentations has been done in cytology specimens from various sites. Microfilaria infection in association with peripheral blood pancytopenia has been rarely reported. An aetiopathological co-relation of these haematological manifestations of microfilaria needs further investigation.

Keywords: Bone marrow parasite; Maturation arrest; Microfilariae.

Publication types

  • Case Reports