Case Report
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Jul 26, 2024; 12(21): 4807-4812
Published online Jul 26, 2024. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v12.i21.4807
Paragonimiasis misdiagnosed as liver abscess: A case report
Ying-Qi Zheng, Gong-Bing Guo, Mei-Fang Wang, He-Zhong Zhu, Chan Zhou, Lin-Hong Li, Lu Zhang, Yu-Quan Liu
Ying-Qi Zheng, Gong-Bing Guo, He-Zhong Zhu, Chan Zhou, Lin-Hong Li, Lu Zhang, Yu-Quan Liu, Department of General Practice, Taihe Hospital, Hubei University of Medicine, Shiyan 442000, Hubei Province, China
Mei-Fang Wang, Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Taihe Hospital, Hubei University of Medicine, Shiyan 442000, Hubei Province, China
Author contributions: Zheng YQ and Liu YQ were involved in the conception and design of the study; Zheng YQ and Guo GB drafted the manuscript and performed the acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data for the study; Wang MF and Zhu HZ made contributions to the interpretation of the data for the study and revised the manuscript critically for important intellectual content; Zheng YQ, Zhou C and Li LH researched the clinical case, participated in the treatment of the patient and revised the manuscript; Zhang L, Liu YQ and Wang MF confirm the authenticity of all the raw data; All authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Informed consent statement: This study has been approved by the ethics committee of the Taihe hospital, and performed in accordance with the principles of Good Clinical Practice following the Tri-Council guidelines. All study participants, or their legal guardian, provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: Https: //creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yu-Quan Liu, Doctor, Chief Physician, Department of General Practice, Taihe Hospital, Hubei University of Medicine, No. 32 Renmin South Road, Shiyan 442000, Hubei Province, China. lyqliuyuquan123456@163.com
Received: April 12, 2024
Revised: June 3, 2024
Accepted: June 13, 2024
Published online: July 26, 2024
Processing time: 78 Days and 22.2 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Paragonimiasis is a typical food-borne zoonotic disease. Hosts acquire Paragonimus infection through the ingestion of raw or undercooked crayfish and crab. The clinical manifestations of the disease are varied, and it is often misdiagnosed or missed. The diagnosis of paragonimiasis should be considered comprehensively. Praziquantel is the first choice for treatment, and albendazole can be used in combination with repeated courses in severe cases.

CASE SUMMARY

We report a case of liver paragonimiasis that was misdiagnosed as an abscess. The patient presented with fatigue and poor appetite for 2 months, and was diagnosed with liver abscess in the local hospital. After 6 months, the patient visited our hospital because of recurrent abdominal pain and was diagnosed with liver paragonimiasis based on epidemiological history, clinical presentations, and laboratory findings. He was treated with praziquantel (25 mg/kg) three times a day for 3 days; however, the symptoms still presented after treatment. He was treated with oral praziquantel and albendazole for one further course. Follow-up suggested that the treatment was effective and the symptoms improved.

CONCLUSION

The combination of albendazole and praziquantel may improve the therapeutic efficacy of paragonimiasis.

Keywords: Liver paragonimiasis, Liver abscess, Misdiagnosis, Albendazole, Praziquantel, Case report

Core Tip: We report a case of paragonimiasis that was misdiagnosed as liver abscess. The patient was treated with praziquantel and albendazole. Follow-up examinations suggested that the treatment was effective.