Fasciola Hepatica Induced Hepatic Abscess Treated with Triclabendazole

• Main Authors: Hyun Joon Park, Gil-Soon Choi, Minjung Jung, Sang Uk Lee
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Jin Publishing & Printing Co. 2021-01-01
• Series: The Korean Journal of Gastroenterology
• Subjects: fasciola hepatica; fascioliasis; liver abscess; triclabendazole
• Online Access: http://www.kjg.or.kr/journal/view.html?uid=5665&vmd=Full

Fascioliasis is a zoonotic disease caused by Fasciola hepatica that infects mainly cattle, sheep, and goats. Humans can be infected by water or aquatic plants contaminated with metacercariae. The authors encountered two cases of F. hepatica infection. One patient reported abdominal discomfort with marked eosinophilia. The other patient had chest discomfort with marked eosinophilia. The abdominal CT images revealed hypodense lesions in the liver. The ultrasonography-guided liver biopsy findings in both patients were indicative of parasitic infections. Serological tests confirmed the definite diagnoses. Both patients were treated with a single dose of triclabendazole, which is the treatment of choice for fascioliasis. These findings suggest that a diagnosis of fascioliasis, particularly in the acute phase, should be considered in patients with abdominal pain, marked eosinophilia, and hypodense hepatic lesions on CT.