[Intestinal bilharziasis in Quebec tourists: parasitologic and diagnostic aspects]

Intestinal bilharziasis (or schistosomiasis) is becoming more and more frequent among Canadian travellers who come in contact with natural soft waters in tropical countries. The clinical signs accompanying contamination, the prodrome and the chronic phase are inconstant, but eosinophilia is often the warning sign, and specific seroparasitologic findings suggest the diagnostic investigation, Five tourists from Quebec became infected while travelling in Martinique. The clinical, parasitologic and serologic features that led to the diagnosis are described. The prodome (a flu-like syndrome with eosinophilia) is underlined. Treatment with niridazole was effective, as confirmed by the absence of Schistosoma mansoni eggs (or the presence of dead eggs) in specimens from rectal biopsies performed subsequently.