Hydatid disease (HD) is an endemic illness in many countries, and it poses an important public health problem that's influenced by peoples' socioeconomic status and migration that spreads this disease. Although rare, it may occur in any organ or tissue. The most common site is the liver (59-75%), followed in frequency by lung (27%), kidney (3%), bone (1-4%) and brain (1-2%). Other sites such as the heart, spleen, pancreas and muscles are very rarely affected. Unusual sites for this disease can cause diagnostic problems. This pictorial essay illustrates various radiological findings of HD in the liver, spleen, kidney, pancreas, peritoneal cavity, omentum, adrenal, ovary, lung, mediastinum and retroperitoneum. Familiarity with the imaging findings of HD may be helpful in making an accurate diagnosis and preventing potential complications.
Abdominal Cavity/parasitology/radiography ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Contrast Media/administration & dosage ; Digestive System/pathology/radiography/ultrasonography ; Digestive System Diseases/diagnosis/parasitology ; Echinococcosis/*diagnosis/parasitology/*radiography ; Endocrine Glands/parasitology/radiography ; Female ; Humans ; Kidney/parasitology/pathology ; Liver/parasitology/radiography ; Lung/parasitology/radiography ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods ; Male ; Mediastinum/parasitology/radiography ; Middle Aged ; Pancreas/parasitology/radiography ; Radiographic Image Enhancement/methods ; Spleen/parasitology/radiography ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed/methods

In Korea, many people enjoy eating raw or underkooked freshwater crayfish and crabs which unfortunately may cause paragonimiasis. Here, we describe a case of pulmonary and abdominal paragonimiasis in a 9-year-old girl, who presented with a 1-month history of abdominal pain, especially in the right flank and the right inguinal area, with anorexia. A chest radiograph revealed pleural effusion in both lungs, and her abdominal sonography indicated an inflammatory lesion in the right psoas muscle. Peripheral blood analysis of the patient showed hypereosinophilia (66.0%) and an elevated total serum IgE level (>2,500 IU/ml). The pleural effusion tested by ELISA were also positive for antibodies against paragonimiasis. Her dietary history stated that she had ingested raw freshwater crab, 4 months previously. The diagnosis was pulmonary paragonimiasis accompanied by abdominal muscle involvement. She was improved after 5 cycles of praziquantel treatment and 2 times of pleural effusion drainage. In conclusion, herein, we report a case of pulmonary and abdominal paragonimiasis in a girl who presented with abdominal pain and tenderness in the inguinal area.
Abdominal Muscles/*parasitology/pathology/ultrasonography ; Animals ; Anthelmintics/therapeutic use ; Brachyura/*parasitology ; Child ; Drainage ; Female ; Humans ; Lung/parasitology/pathology ; Lung Diseases, Parasitic/*diagnosis/drug therapy/radiography ; Paragonimiasis/*diagnosis/drug therapy/radiography ; Paragonimus/isolation & purification ; Pleural Effusion/parasitology/therapy ; Praziquantel/therapeutic use ; Republic of Korea ; Shellfish/*parasitology ; Treatment Outcome

Pulmonary paragonimiasis is a relatively rare cause of lung disease revealing a wide variety of radiologic findings, such as air-space consolidation, nodules, and cysts. We describe here a case of pulmonary paragonimiasis in a 27-year-old woman who presented with a 2-month history of cough and sputum. Based on chest computed tomography (CT) scans and fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) findings, the patient was suspected to have a metastatic lung tumor. However, she was diagnosed as having Paragonimus westermani infection by an immunoserological examination using ELISA. Follow-up chest X-ray and CT scans after chemotherapy with praziquantel showed an obvious improvement. There have been several reported cases of pulmonary paragonimiasis mimicking lung tumors on FDG-PET. However, all of them were suspected as primary lung tumors. To our knowledge, this patient represents the first case of paragonimiasis mimicking metastatic lung disease on FDG-PET CT imaging.
Adult ; Animals ; Diagnostic Errors ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Diseases, Parasitic/*diagnosis/*parasitology/radiography/radionuclide imaging ; Lung Neoplasms/*diagnosis ; Paragonimiasis/*diagnosis/*parasitology/radiography/radionuclide imaging ; Paragonimus westermani/isolation & purification ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the serial CT findings of Paragonimus westermani infected dogs and the microscopic structures of the worm cysts using Micro-CT. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was approved by the committee on animal research at our institution. Fifteen dogs infected with P. westermani underwent serial contrast-enhanced CT scans at pre-infection, after 10 days of infection, and monthly thereafter until six months for determining the radiologic-pathologic correlation. Three dogs (one dog each time) were sacrificed at 1, 3 and 6 months, respectively. After fixation of the lungs, both multi-detector CT and Micro-CT were performed for examining the worm cysts. RESULTS: The initial findings were pleural effusion and/or subpleural ground-glass opacities or linear opacities at day 10. At day 30, subpleural and peribronchial nodules appeared with hydropneumothorax and abdominal or chest wall air bubbles. Cavitary change and bronchial dilatation began to be seen on CT scan at day 30 and this was mostly seen together with mediastinal lymphadenopathy at day 60. Thereafter, subpleural ground-glass opacities and nodules with or without cavitary changes were persistently observed until day 180. After cavitary change of the nodules, the migratory features of the subpleural or peribronchial nodules were seen on all the serial CT scans. Micro-CT showed that the cyst wall contained dilated interconnected tubular structures, which had communications with the cavity and the adjacent distal bronchus. CONCLUSION: The CT findings of paragonimiasis depend on the migratory stage of the worms. The worm cyst can have numerous interconnected tubular channels within its own wall and these channels have connections with the cavity and the adjacent distal bronchus.
Animals ; Contrast Media/administration & dosage ; Cysts/*parasitology/*radiography ; Disease Progression ; Dogs ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hydropneumothorax/parasitology ; Iohexol/analogs & derivatives/diagnostic use ; Lung/parasitology/radiography ; Male ; Observer Variation ; Paragonimiasis/*diagnosis/parasitology ; Paragonimus westermani/growth & development/isolation & purification ; Pleural Effusion/parasitology ; Radiographic Image Enhancement/methods ; Time Factors ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed/*methods

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Pleuropulmonary paragonimiasis produces no specific symptoms or radiologic findings, allowing for the possibility of misdiagnosis. We evaluated the specific clinical and pleural fluid features of pleuropulmonary paragonimiasis masquerading as pleural tuberculosis. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical and radiologic characteristics of 20 patients diagnosed with pleuropulmonary paragonimiasis between 2001 and 2011. RESULTS: In total, 17 patients presented with respiratory symptoms, including dyspnea (30%), hemoptysis (20%), cough (20%), and pleuritic chest pain (15%). Chest radiographs revealed intrapulmonary parenchymal lesions, including air-space consolidation (30%), nodular opacities (20%), cystic lesions (15%), ground-glass opacities (10%), and pneumothorax (5%). A pleural f luid examination revealed eosinophilia, low glucose levels, and high lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels in 87%, 76%, and 88% of the patients, respectively. These traits helped to distinguish pleuropulmonary paragonimiasis from other pleural diseases such as parapneumonic effusion, malignancy, and pleural tuberculosis. CONCLUSIONS: Pleuropulmonary paragonimiasis is often initially misdiagnosed as other pleural diseases. Therefore, it is important to establish the correct diagnosis. In patients with unexplained pleural effusion living in paragonimiasis-endemic areas, pleural fluid obtained by thoracentesis should be examined to distinguish pleuropulmonary paragonimiasis. When marked eosinophilia, high LDH levels, and low glucose levels are identified in pleural fluid, physicians could consider a diagnosis of pleuropulmonary paragonimiasis.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Animals ; Biological Markers/analysis ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Eosinophilia/diagnosis/parasitology ; Female ; Glucose/analysis ; Humans ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase/analysis ; Lung Diseases, Parasitic/*diagnosis/metabolism/parasitology/radiography ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Paracentesis ; Paragonimiasis/*diagnosis/metabolism/parasitology/radiography ; Paragonimus westermani/*isolation & purification ; Pleural Effusion/*diagnosis/metabolism/parasitology/radiography ; Predictive Value of Tests ; Retrospective Studies ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Tuberculosis, Pleural/*diagnosis ; Young Adult