Alveolar hydatid disease

About: Alveolar hydatid disease is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 171 publications have been published within this topic receiving 2993 citations. The topic is also known as: AHD & alveolar colloid of the liver.

Cytologic diagnosis of isolated pancreatic alveolar hydatid disease with immunologic and PCR analyses : A case report

Abstract: BACKGROUND Alveolar hydatid disease (AHD) is a rare and severe parasitic infection caused by the larval stage of the fox tapeworm, Echinococcus multilocularis. AHD mainly involves the liver, and although it may extend progressively to the pancreas, isolated pancreatic localization has not been reported previously. CASE A 68-year-old white female presented with a multicystic mass in the pancreas. Fine needle aspiration showed some protoscolices, free hooklets and fragments of laminated layer, which are pathognomonic features of echinococcosis. Serologic analyses by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using Em2plus antigen showed high antibody reactivity of the patient's serum, which is indicative of an infection with E multilocularis. Diagnosis was finally confirmed by molecular and immunologic analyses of the cytologic material by polymerase chain reaction and direct immunofluorescence. CONCLUSION This case illustrates the value of cytology in the identification of echinococcosis, particularly when it involves extrahepatic sites, where the risk of misdiagnosis may be related to its extremely rare occurrence. Precise parasitologic tying of E multilocularis in endemic areas is important.

Use of Interferon γ and Mebendazole to Stop the Progression of Alveolar Hydatid Disease: Case Report

Abstract: We describe a 28-year-old female who presented with metastatic spread of a suspected occult tumor. The diagnosis of alveolar echinococcosis was established by needle biopsy of the liver and ELISA. The patient's clinical symptoms initially decreased after treatment with mebendazole, but the lesions progressed during the following 6 months. Albendazole was not available in Austria. Because the synthesis of interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) and IFN-alpha is markedly decreased in patients with echinococcosis, we treated our patient with IFN-gamma while continuing mebendazole therapy. This combination halted progression of the disease during the 12 months of follow-up.

Observations on Some Natural-Focal Zoonoses in Alaska

Abstract: In Alaska, as in arctic and subarctic Eurasia, important natural-focal zoonoses are rabies, brucellosis, tularemia, trichinosis, alveolar hydatid disease, cystic hydatid disease, and diphyllo-bothriasis. Most frequently affected are aboriginal peoples in villages within biocenoses that include the natural parasite-host assemblages. Pathogens are transmitted to man from wild animals and from dogs, which are important as synanthropic hosts. The prevalence and rate of transmission of certain pathogens in natural foci are related to the numerical density of small mammals, especially rodents, which may themselves be involved as hosts, and on which the numbers of their predators ultimately depend, such as is evident in the natural cycles of Echinococcus multilocularis and of rabies virus. Some pathogens in northern regions exhibit biological characteristics that separate them from morphologically indistinguishable strains at lower latitudes (eg, Trichinella spiralis and E granulosus). Host-parasite relationship...

Serologic Tests for Diagnosis and Post-Treatment Evaluation of Patients with Alveolar Hydatid Disease (Echinococcus Multilocularis)

Abstract: The indirect hemagglutination (IHA) and immunoelectrophoresis (IEP) tests were used for diagnosis and follow-up evaluation of 17 patients with alveolar hydatid disease caused by Echinococcus multilocularis. Follow-up periods ranged from 2 to 22 years. At the time of diagnosis 16 (94%) patients' sera gave IHA titers ≥ 1:128. Serum specimens from 13 patients were examined by IEP; nine (69%) revealed the arc 5, and three of the four arc 5-negative sera revealed one or more non-characterized bands. Titers declined markedly during the first year following radical surgical resection of the larval lesions; in three cases clinical evidence of recurrence was preceded by rising serologic titers. Antibody has persisted at high levels in nonresected patients treated continuously with high doses of mebendazole.

Detection of antibodies against glycolipids of Echinococcus multilocularis metacestodes in sera of patients with alveolar hydatid disease.

Abstract: Glycosphingolipids extracted from Echinococcus multilocularis metacestodes were tested against sera from patients with alveolar hydatid disease (AHD). The tests were performed first by ELISA then by immunostaining on thin layer chromatography. A binding between the parasite glycolipids and antibodies of AHD human sera was observed by ELISA. The glycolipids related to this binding were specifically parasite neutral glycosphingolipids. No reaction was observed with parasite acid glycolipids nor with neutral glycolipid extracts from human or mongolian gerbil erythrocytes. Comparison between absorbance values of 25 AHD sera and 20 control sera showed significant differences. Similar results were obtained with sera from hydatid cyst patients. Sera from patients with other parasitoses (schistosomiasis, strongyloidosis or paludism) were also tested. The reactive fractions were identified by immunostaining on thin layer chromatography with AHD sera, they were neutral glycosphingolipids containing at least two carbohydrate residues. These results were compared with chromatograms obtained with hydatid cyst human sera and discussed.