Schistosomiasis

• Published in: The New England journal of medicine Vol. 347; no. 10; pp. 766 - 768
• Main Authors: Schwartz, Eli, Rozenman, Judith
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Massachusetts Medical Society 05-09-2002
• Subjects: Acute Disease; Artemisinins; Humans; Praziquantel - therapeutic use; Schistosomiasis - diagnosis; Schistosomiasis - drug therapy; Schistosomicides - therapeutic use; Sesquiterpenes - therapeutic use; Travel
• ISSN: 0028-4793; 1533-4406
• DOI: 10.1056/NEJM200209053471017

To the Editor:
The enormous increase in travel has led to an increase in the number of cases of schistosomiasis in developed countries where the infection is not endemic. Our knowledge of schistosomiasis derives from many studies in countries where it is endemic, as described in the review by Ross et al. (April 18 issue).
1
However, in the new population of nonimmune travelers, the disease has a different clinical pattern. Acute schistosomiasis is practically nonexistent in populations in which the infection is hyperendemic, but it is prominent among returning travelers. In the past three years in our clinic, 23 of . . .