Urinary tract Schistosoma haematobium infection: a case report

Urinary schistosomiasis, caused by Schistosoma haematobium , is reported to be endemic in 54 countries in Africa and the Middle East. 1 In some endemic areas, studies in school‐age children showed a high prevalence of S haematobium infection. 2,3 Humans can be infected by cercariae when they are in contact with contaminated freshwater. The adult coupled worms reside in the veins of the vesical and pelvic plexuses, where the female lays 20 to 290 eggs per day. 4 The urinary bladder, the lower ends of the ureters, and the seminal vesicles are the most commonly affected organs. 5 The pathological lesions in urinary schistosomiasis result from the granulomatous host response to the deposition of schistosome eggs in the tissues. Infection becomes established 10 to 12 weeks after cercarial penetration and is manifested by hematuria and urinary excretion of eggs. The case is presented of urinary schistosomiasis in a young African immigrant to Greece. The cystoscopic appearance and the histopathological changes of the bladder before and after treatment with praziquantel (PZQ) are shown along with the imaging findings of the urinary tract on computed tomography (CT) scan and ultrasonography (US). A 25‐year‐old woman from Ghana resident in Athens presented with pain in the left lumbar and abdominal regions. Physical examination revealed a healthy female with no abnormal signs on abdominal, genitourinary, and neurologic examination. The results of blood biochemical and hematological tests were normal except for a peripheral blood eosinophil count of 759/ μ L. US of the abdomen and genitourinary tract showed thickening of the bladder wall with no other pathologic findings and liver, spleen, and kidney of normal size and appearance. CT of the abdomen and genitourinary tract revealed (1) linear calcification occupying the entire bladder wall circumference, (2) circular calcification of the left ureteric orifice, (3) linear calcification …