Abstract
An 89-year-old man was referred to our hospital because of fever, anorexia, and dyspnea. An enhanced CT scan showed pneumonia and acute appendicitis with an abdominal abscess. Interval appendectomy was performed after improvement of the pneumonia. Pathological findings showed gangrenous appendicitis with many old ova of Schistosoma japonicum in the submucosal layer of the appendix.
There have been no new patients with Schistosoma japonicum in Japan since 1978 because of the eradication of Miyairi shellfish, the intermediate host, and a few cases with old ova of Schistosoma japonicum have been reported. However, imported infections of Schistosoma japonicum have recently been increasing. We should consider the possibility of active infection with Schistosoma japonicum when its ova are detected in the resected specimen.
