Blastocystis hominis
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Epidemiology
- commonly found in stool specimens of asymptomatic individuals
- no significant difference in prevalence of Blastomyces in stool of patients with diarrhea vs those without diarrhea[2]
Pathology
- protozoan that infests the colon
- heavy infestation may result in diarrhea or colitis
Clinical manifestations
- intestinal
- extraintestinal manifestations are predominantly cutaneous[2]
Laboratory
- stool examination indicated only for patients with diarrhea lasting >= 3 days[2]
- diagnosis is made by recovery of trophozoites in feces
- trophozoites
- 3 forms seen:
- vacuolated (most common)
- spherical 5-20 um in diameter
- clear central area
- 2-4 peripheral nuclei
- amoeboid - may predominate in heavy infestations
- granular
- vacuolated (most common)
- 3 forms seen:
- Blastocystis hominis DNA
Management
- therapy not uniformly effective
- metronidazole 750 mg PO TID for 10 days
- Bactrim has been found to have activity against Blastomyces
- iodoquinol 650 mg PO TID for 20 days
More general terms
Additional terms
References
- ↑ Clinical Diagnosis & Management by Laboratory Methods, 19th edition, J.B. Henry (ed), W.B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia, PA. 1996, pg 1274
- ↑ Jump up to: 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Medical Knowledge Self Assessment Program (MKSAP) 16, American College of Physicians, Philadelphia 2012
- ↑ Jump up to: 3.0 3.1 Tan KS, Mirza H, Teo JD, Wu B, Macary PA. Current Views on the Clinical Relevance of Blastocystis spp. Curr Infect Dis Rep. 2010 Jan;12(1):28-35 PMID: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21308496