Intestinal anisakiasis treated successfully with conservative therapy: Importance of clinical diagnosis

Abstract

Intestinal anisakiasis is not only a rare parasitic disease, but is also difficult to diagnose. The symptoms are not specific and are often very severe and abrupt, and the findings of clinical imaging are very remarkable. Therefore, intestinal anisakiasis is often misdiagnosed as acute abdomen or intestinal obstruction and is treated surgically. However, if intestinal anisakiasis could be diagnosed correctly, it is well treated conservatively. We experienced three cases of intestinal anisakiasis, which were diagnosed correctly and treated successfully with conservative therapy. A correct clinical history and imaging interpretation helped us diagnose intestinal anisakiasis correctly and thus treat the patients successfully with conservative therapy.

Keywords: Acute abdomen; Computed tomography findings; Clinical diagnosis; Intestinal anisakiasis; Conservative therapy

Core tip: We conclude that a correct clinical history and imaging interpretation will enable us to diagnose intestinal anisakiasis correctly and successfully manage patients with conservative measures, avoiding unnecessary surgery.