Schistosoma mansoni infestation: an imported case of a Japanese patient

A 25-year-old male Japanese who had resided in Ethiopia, presented to our department with eosinophilia, which had been present for about 1 year. Stool examination revealed eggs of Schistosoma mansoni containing miracidia with flame cell activity, and he was diagnosed as having an infestation with this organism. He was treated with praziquantel, and a good parasitological therapeutic result was obtained. Although schistosomiasis mansoni is unfamiliar to Japanese doctors because the infecting organisms are not indigenous to Japan, doctors should be aware of this disease when they encounter patients with eosinophilia who have visited or resided in tropical developing countries.