Case Report: Angiostrongylus cantonensis Infection Presenting as Small Fiber Neuropathy.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis is an emerging parasite that is the most common cause of eosinophilic meningitis worldwide. Human infection typically presents with headache, neck stiffness, and paresthesia. We report a case of a woman with PCR positive A. cantonensis infection who presented with symptoms of small fiber neuropathy (SFN) but no headache. SFN was confirmed by skin biopsy. After failing standard medications for neuropathy, she was treated with intravenous lidocaine with considerable improvement. However, she required medications for 1 year to treat her chronic neuropathy. Infection by A. cantonensis should be added to the list of causes of SFN, and its potential to cause chronic sequelae should be appreciated.

Red Snappers and Red Herrings: Pelvic Tuberculosis Causing Elevated CA 125 and Mimicking Advanced Ovarian Cancer. A Case Report and Literature Review.

Female genital tuberculosis (FGTB) is a form of extra-pulmonary tuberculosis that has been primarily described in developing countries, where it is an important cause of infertility, ectopic pregnancy, and miscarriage. FGTB is rare in the United States and because its clinical presentation is non-specific and often insidious, FGTB may be misdiagnosed as a gynecologic malignancy or endometriosis. The tendency of tuberculosis to dramatically increase serum CA 125 levels contributes to the potential for FGTB to be mistaken for ovarian cancer in particular. We describe the case of a young woman who presented with what was initially thought to be advanced ovarian cancer but who had tuberculosis of the peritoneum, uterus, and ovaries discovered at laparotomy. This case emphasizes the importance of considering tuberculosis in the differential of any patient presenting with an abdomino-pelvic mass and an elevated CA 125 level.