Liver flukes diagnosed by ERCP in a local immigrant community

Although a common pathogen in much of Asia, liver flukes are believed to be a rare cause of disease in the United States. In this series, we describe 3 patients diagnosed with Clonorchis sinensis during ERCP within 1 year at our institution.

Three patients referred to a large community hospital underwent ERCP with direct visualization of a worm in the biliary tree and subsequent histopathologic confirmation.

The patients had variable clinical presentations, and 2 had repeat negative stool studies for ova and parasites. Each patient had imaging studies showing abnormalities within the biliary tree, after which ERCP was performed with direct visualization and extraction of a wormlike structure. It was confirmed that all 3 patients had emigrated from China within the last decade. The epidemiologic data and the histopathologic characteristics of the fluke eggs in utero were consistent with a diagnosis of C sinensis.

The diagnosis of clonorchiasis should remain on the differential diagnosis for patients with nonspecific biliary symptoms who have known risk factors for this uncommonly common pathogen.