ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: We report a case of an Oestrus ovis larva which developed into the second larval stage within a healthy, immunocompetent human, and we review the relevant literature. METHODS: Clinical case report and Pubmed search of reports of human nasal myiasis due to Oestrus ovis, especially those describing the larval stage. RESULTS: Humans are not normally hosts of the sheep nasal bot fly, but infestations by its larvae have been described. The eye is the most common site, but larvae have occasionally been found in the human nose. Transformation of larvae into the second and third stages, within the human nose, is even more uncommon. CONCLUSION: To the best of our knowledge, we report the first Swedish case, and the third case world-wide, of Oestrus ovis larval development beyond the first larval stage, within an immunocompetent, healthy human.
Subject(s)
Diptera/growth & development , Myiasis/etiology , Nasal Obstruction/parasitology , Aged , Animals , Greece , Humans , Immunocompetence , Larva/growth & development , Male , Myiasis/veterinary , Nasal Cavity/parasitology , Sheep/parasitology , Sheep Diseases/parasitology , Sweden , TravelABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the possible causal role of pathologic hemostatic mechanisms in sudden hearing loss. DESIGN: The study was prospective. SETTING: The patients were hospitalized, and all tests were performed at the hospital. PATIENTS: Thirty-two consecutive patients with sudden hearing loss participated, as well as a control group of 28 healthy individuals. The control group was matched with regard to body mass index. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Venous blood analyses were made regarding general blood parameters, as well as specific hemostatic parameters. RESULTS: Twenty-five of the patients had some kind of aberration of specific hemostasis parameters; seven patients had an increase in the activity of the plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (ie, a glycoprotein associated with diminished fibrinolysis) compared with that in the control group (P < .05). Increased plasminogen activator inhibitor levels were most frequently observed among the patients who were overweight. Seven of the oldest patients had an increase of D-dimers, ie, a degradation product of fibrin, and most of these patients had a history of cardiovascular disease. CONCLUSION: Although isolated aberrations in the hemostatic pathway were observed, we concluded that pathologic hemostasis does not seem to have a decisive importance for the pathogenesis of sudden deafness.
