Gnathostomiasis: Report of a case and brief review

Nematodes of the genus Gnathostoma can cause a spectrum of disease in humans. This includes a distinctive syndrome of intermittent migratory subcutaneous swellings, central nervous system involvement with high morbidity and mortality and occasionally, involvement of other organs. Gnathostomiasis is endemic in southern and eastern Asia, particularly Thailand, but has recently been reported from Ecuador and Mexico. Diagnosis is usually based on clinical, epidemiological and serological findings. A recent study suggests that treatment with albendazole is effective. This report describes a patient diagnosed in Canada in whom evidence of pericarditis was associated with gnathostomiasis and in whom treatment with albendazole appears to have been effective.