infectious diseases
Fascioliasis
Introduction
Fascioliasis is infection with the liver flukeFasciola hepatica, which is acquired by eating contaminated watercress or other water plants. Clinical manifestations include abdominal pain and hepatomegaly. Diagnosis is by serology or detection of eggs in stool, duodenal aspirates, or bile specimens. Treatment is withtriclabendazoleor possiblynitazoxanide. Flukes are parasitic flatworms that infect various parts of the body (eg, blood vessels, gastrointestinal tract, lungs, liver) depending on the species. F. hepaticais the sheep and cattle liver fluke. Incidental human fascioliasis, acquired by eating watercress contaminated by sheep or cattle dung, occurs in Europe, Africa, China, and South America but is rare in the United States. In acute infection, immature flukes migrate through the intestinal wall, the peritoneal cavity, the liver capsule, and the parenchyma of the liver before entering the biliary ducts where they mature to adulthood in about 3 to 4 months. The adults lay eggs, which are passed through the bile ducts into the duodenum and then out in the stool. See also theWorld Health Organization (WHO)andCenters for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)information on fascioliasis. 