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Hookworm Infection as a Rare Cause of Acute Pancreatitis

Received: 18 December 2018     Accepted: 21 January 2019     Published: 15 February 2019
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Abstract

The aim of this case report is to alert physicians to the possibility that hookworm disease can lead to acute pancreatitis. Method: We report a case of hookworm infestation associated with acute pancreatitis and food intolerance. Result: The patient presented on the emergency department complaining of anorexia, asthenia, nausea, vomiting, epigastric pain and fever. Blood test showed a amylase of 512U/L and a lipase of 1902, normal levels of hepatic aminotransferases, bilirubin and alkaline phosphatase and a slight elevation of the Creactive protein. An ultrasound showed no cholelithiasis, thickening of vesicular wall or dilation of the common bile duct and the computed tomography (CT) showed a normal pancreas with no evidence of cholecystitis or peripancreatic fluid. An upper digestive endoscopy was done because of food intolerance and revealed gastric stasis and duodenal mucosa congestive, friable, with loss of the usual pleating with biopsies revealing the presence of Ancylostoma duodenale. The patient was treated with albendazole and remains asymptomatic in a 3-year follow-up. Conclusion: Hookworm infestation is usually asymptomatic. Ampulla of Vater-migrating hookworms resulting in acute pancreatitis is a very rare event.

Published in International Journal of Gastroenterology (Volume 3, Issue 1)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11
Page(s) 1-3
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2019. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Hookworm Infestation, Ancylostoma Duodenale, Acute Pancreatitis, Food Intolerance

References
[1] Bartsch SM, Hotez PJ, Asti L, et al. The Global Economic and Health Burden of Human Hookworm Infection. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2016; 10: e0004922.
[2] Jourdan PM, Lamberton PHL, Fenwick A, Addiss DG. Soil-transmitted helminth infections. Lancet 2017.
[3] http: //universoparasito. blogspot. pt/2014/07/ancilostomiase. html
[4] Marco Albonico, Lorenzo Savioli. Hookwor: a negleted ressurgente infection. BMJ 2017; 359: j 4813.
[5] Tseng LM, Sun CK, Wang TL, Lin AC. Hookworm infection as unexpected cause of recurrent pancreatitis. Am J Emerg. Med. 2014 Nov; 32 (11): 1435. e3-4.
[6] Hotez PJ, Bethany J, Bottazzi ME, Brooker S, Buss P. Hoohworm: “The great infection of mankind”. PLoS Med. 2005 Mar 2 (3): e67.
[7] David R Haburchak, Christopher M Watson, Vinod K Dhawan, Pranatharthi Haran Chandrasekar, Jeffrey L Arnold, Basim Asmar, Anika Baxter Tam, Pranatharthi Haran Chandrasekar, Swati Garekar, Aaron Hexdall, Patrick W Hickey, Ashir Kumar, Mark Louden, Russell W Steele, Francisco Talavera, Eric L Weiss, Mary L Windle. Hookworm disease. Medscape.
[8] Drugs for Parasitic Infections, 3rd ed, The Medical Letter, New Rochelle, NY 2013.
[9] Moser W, Schindler C, Keiser J. Efficacy of recommended drugs against soil transmitted helminths: systematic review and network meta-analysis. BMJ 2017; 358: j4307.
[10] Loukas A, Hotez PJ, Diemert D, Yazdanbakhsh M, McCarthy JS, Correa-Oliveira R, Croese J, Bethony JM. Hookworm infection. Nat Rev Dis Primers 2016; 2: 16088. doi: 10.1038/nrdp.2016.88.
[11] de Silva NR, BrookerS, Hotez PJ, Montresor A, Engels D, Savioli L. Soil-transmitted helminth infections: updatins the global picture. Trends Parasitol. 2003 Dec. 19 (12): 547-51.
[12] Stoltzfus RJ, Dreyfuss ML, Chwaya HM, Albonico M. Hookworm control as a strategy to prevent iron deficiency. Nutr. Rev 1997 Jun. 55 (6): 223-32.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Mónica Andreia Pereira Da Silva Laureano, João Miguel Salvador Nobre, Inês Coelho Gonçalves, Nuno Henrique Ventura Ferreira, Tânia Raquel Telmo Valente, et al. (2019). Hookworm Infection as a Rare Cause of Acute Pancreatitis. International Journal of Gastroenterology, 3(1), 1-3. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11

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    ACS Style

    Mónica Andreia Pereira Da Silva Laureano; João Miguel Salvador Nobre; Inês Coelho Gonçalves; Nuno Henrique Ventura Ferreira; Tânia Raquel Telmo Valente, et al. Hookworm Infection as a Rare Cause of Acute Pancreatitis. Int. J. Gastroenterol. 2019, 3(1), 1-3. doi: 10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11

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    AMA Style

    Mónica Andreia Pereira Da Silva Laureano, João Miguel Salvador Nobre, Inês Coelho Gonçalves, Nuno Henrique Ventura Ferreira, Tânia Raquel Telmo Valente, et al. Hookworm Infection as a Rare Cause of Acute Pancreatitis. Int J Gastroenterol. 2019;3(1):1-3. doi: 10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11,
      author = {Mónica Andreia Pereira Da Silva Laureano and João Miguel Salvador Nobre and Inês Coelho Gonçalves and Nuno Henrique Ventura Ferreira and Tânia Raquel Telmo Valente and Sandra Maria Martins Amado and Maria Fernanda Cunha E Silva and Sandra Maria Maurício Hilário Pires and Miguel Nuno Lages Coelho Dos Santos},
      title = {Hookworm Infection as a Rare Cause of Acute Pancreatitis},
      journal = {International Journal of Gastroenterology},
      volume = {3},
      number = {1},
      pages = {1-3},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijg.20190301.11},
      abstract = {The aim of this case report is to alert physicians to the possibility that hookworm disease can lead to acute pancreatitis. Method: We report a case of hookworm infestation associated with acute pancreatitis and food intolerance. Result: The patient presented on the emergency department complaining of anorexia, asthenia, nausea, vomiting, epigastric pain and fever. Blood test showed a amylase of 512U/L and a lipase of 1902, normal levels of hepatic aminotransferases, bilirubin and alkaline phosphatase and a slight elevation of the Creactive protein. An ultrasound showed no cholelithiasis, thickening of vesicular wall or dilation of the common bile duct and the computed tomography (CT) showed a normal pancreas with no evidence of cholecystitis or peripancreatic fluid. An upper digestive endoscopy was done because of food intolerance and revealed gastric stasis and duodenal mucosa congestive, friable, with loss of the usual pleating with biopsies revealing the presence of Ancylostoma duodenale. The patient was treated with albendazole and remains asymptomatic in a 3-year follow-up. Conclusion: Hookworm infestation is usually asymptomatic. Ampulla of Vater-migrating hookworms resulting in acute pancreatitis is a very rare event.},
     year = {2019}
    }
    

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    T1  - Hookworm Infection as a Rare Cause of Acute Pancreatitis
    AU  - Mónica Andreia Pereira Da Silva Laureano
    AU  - João Miguel Salvador Nobre
    AU  - Inês Coelho Gonçalves
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    AU  - Tânia Raquel Telmo Valente
    AU  - Sandra Maria Martins Amado
    AU  - Maria Fernanda Cunha E Silva
    AU  - Sandra Maria Maurício Hilário Pires
    AU  - Miguel Nuno Lages Coelho Dos Santos
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    DO  - 10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11
    T2  - International Journal of Gastroenterology
    JF  - International Journal of Gastroenterology
    JO  - International Journal of Gastroenterology
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    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijg.20190301.11
    AB  - The aim of this case report is to alert physicians to the possibility that hookworm disease can lead to acute pancreatitis. Method: We report a case of hookworm infestation associated with acute pancreatitis and food intolerance. Result: The patient presented on the emergency department complaining of anorexia, asthenia, nausea, vomiting, epigastric pain and fever. Blood test showed a amylase of 512U/L and a lipase of 1902, normal levels of hepatic aminotransferases, bilirubin and alkaline phosphatase and a slight elevation of the Creactive protein. An ultrasound showed no cholelithiasis, thickening of vesicular wall or dilation of the common bile duct and the computed tomography (CT) showed a normal pancreas with no evidence of cholecystitis or peripancreatic fluid. An upper digestive endoscopy was done because of food intolerance and revealed gastric stasis and duodenal mucosa congestive, friable, with loss of the usual pleating with biopsies revealing the presence of Ancylostoma duodenale. The patient was treated with albendazole and remains asymptomatic in a 3-year follow-up. Conclusion: Hookworm infestation is usually asymptomatic. Ampulla of Vater-migrating hookworms resulting in acute pancreatitis is a very rare event.
    VL  - 3
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Author Information
  • Department of General Surgery II, Centro Hospitalar de Leiria, Leiria, Portugal

  • Department of General Surgery II, Centro Hospitalar de Leiria, Leiria, Portugal

  • Department of General Surgery II, Centro Hospitalar de Leiria, Leiria, Portugal

  • Department of Anatomical Pathology, Centro Hospitalar de Leiria, Leiria, Portugal

  • Department of General Surgery II, Centro Hospitalar de Leiria, Leiria, Portugal

  • Department of General Surgery II, Centro Hospitalar de Leiria, Leiria, Portugal

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