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Case Report: Successful Treatment of a Patient with Microfilaremic Dirofilariasis Using Doxycycline

We report the case of a 56-year-old woman with microfilaremic dirofilariasis due to Dirofilaria repens, which is a very rare condition in humans. Of note, just one of six large-volume blood samples of this patient was positive for microfilariae. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing of the...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Lechner, Arno M., Gastager, Herbert, Kern, Jan Marco, Wagner, Birgit, Tappe, Dennis
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7124902/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32043447
http://dx.doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.19-0744
Descripción
Sumario:We report the case of a 56-year-old woman with microfilaremic dirofilariasis due to Dirofilaria repens, which is a very rare condition in humans. Of note, just one of six large-volume blood samples of this patient was positive for microfilariae. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing of the parasite gene determined the geographic origin of the causative helminth. The patient was treated successfully with doxycycline. This drug was chosen because of the patient’s reluctance to the use of ivermectin and to provide an anthelmintic effect by targeting the bacterial endosymbiont Wolbachia present in most filarial species.