Gnathostomiasis. Infestation in an Asian immigrant

With the recent influx of southeast Asians into the United States, an increased incidence of human gnathostomiasis can be expected. A Laotian woman had had two weeks of pruritus associated with fleeting erythematous patches on her abdomen. A peripheral eosinophilia was present. She withdrew a Gnathostoma spinigerum from the skin of her abdomen. Gnathostomiasis is endemic in much of Asia and causes not only migratory cutaneous swellings with erythema but also serious visceral sequelae such as eosinophilic encephalomyelitis. Excision of the parasite is the treatment of choice when possible.