Ophthalmomyiasis Caused by Chrysomya bezziana after Periocular Carcinoma.

We treated a homeless man in Iran with a history of squamous cell carcinoma who had ophthalmomyiasis caused by Chrysomya bezziana parasites. This case highlights a much-neglected condition and describes measures to prevent it.

Towards the automated identification of Chrysomya blow flies from wing images.

The Old World screwworm fly (OWSF), Chrysomya bezziana (Diptera: Calliphoridae), is an important agent of traumatic myiasis and, as such, a major human and animal health problem. In the implementation of OWSF control operations, it is important to determine the geographical origins of such disease-causing species in order to establish whether they derive from endemic or invading populations. Gross morphological and molecular studies have demonstrated the existence of two distinct lineages of this species, one African and the other Asian. Wing morphometry is known to be of substantial assistance in identifying the geographical origin of individuals because it provides diagnostic markers that complement molecular diagnostics. However, placement of the landmarks used in traditional geometric morphometric analysis can be time-consuming and subject to error caused by operator subjectivity. Here we report results of an image-based approach to geometric morphometric analysis for delivering wing-based identifications. Our results indicate that this approach can produce identifications that are practically indistinguishable from more traditional landmark-based results. In addition, we demonstrate that the direct analysis of digital wing images can be used to discriminate between three Chrysomya species of veterinary and forensic importance and between C. bezziana genders.

Old World Screwworm myiasis: First report of auricular Chrysomya bezziana myiasis in a dog in Singapore.

A German Shepherd dog was presented to a referral practice for screwworm myiasis affecting the ear. The successful management involved killing the larvae with afoxolaner plus milbemycin oxime and using video otoscopy to completely remove dead larvae. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case report of auricular myiasis by Chrysomya bezziana in a dog in Singapore and the first report of video otoscopic management of myiasis.

First report of myiasis in dogs caused by Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel 1858) in Colombia.

This paper reports for the first time in Colombia, two myasis cases caused by Cochliomyia hominivorax in stray dogs. Clinical examination of both patients revealed fever and a large wound at the palpebral level on the right side, and multiple perforating wounds in the right posterior limb where larvae were found. The treatment applied was the manual removal of larvae in the dogs, and subsequent eye enucleation in one dog due to the total loss of the upper right eyelid and the severe mechanical damage that the cornea received. Treatment was reinforced with repellents applied around the wounds and antibiotics. This finding of Cochliomyia hominivorax in stray dogs in Colombia raises concerns about the potential of dogs serving as a reservoir for human infection in the region.

Oral myiasis caused by Cochliomyia hominivorax treated with ivermectin and nitrofurazone: case report.

Myiasis is the infestation of tissues and organs of animals and humans by certain dipteran fly larvae. This phenomenon is well-documented, especially among animals and people in tropical and subtropical areas. Oral myiasis is a rare condition that can be caused by several species of dipteran fly larvae. When the larvae are removed from the mouth, the tissues seem to recover with no subsequent complications and no need for further treatment. This article presents a case involving a patient with oral myiasis caused by Cochliomyia hominivorax and treated with ivermectin and nitrofurazone.

Human Chrysomya bezziana myiasis: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Myiasis due to Old World screw-worm fly, Chrysomya bezziana, is an important obligate zoonotic disease in the OIE-list of diseases and is found throughout much of Africa, the Indian subcontinent, southeast and east Asia. C. bezziana myiasis causes not only morbidity and death to animals and humans, but also economic losses in the livestock industries. Because of the aggressive and destructive nature of this disease in hosts, we initiated this study to provide a comprehensive understanding of human myiasis caused by C. bezziana. METHODS: We searched the databases in English (PubMed, Embase and African Index Medicus) and Chinese (CNKI, Wanfang, and Duxiu), and international government online reports to 6th February, 2019, to identify studies concerning C. bezziana. Another ten human cases in China and Papua New Guinea that our team had recorded were also included. RESULTS: We retrieved 1,048 reports from which 202 studies were ultimately eligible for inclusion in the present descriptive analyses. Since the first human case due to C. bezziana was reported in 1909, we have summarized 291 cases and found that these cases often occurred in patients with poor hygiene, low socio-economic conditions, old age, and underlying diseases including infections, age-related diseases, and noninfectious chronic diseases. But C. bezziana myiasis appears largely neglected as a serious medical or veterinary condition, with human and animal cases only reported in 16 and 24 countries respectively, despite this fly species being recorded in 44 countries worldwide. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that cryptic myiasis cases due to the obligate parasite, C. bezziana, are under-recognized. Through this study on C. bezziana etiology, clinical features, diagnosis, treatment, epidemiology, prevention and control, we call for more vigilance and awareness of the disease from governments, health authorities, clinicians, veterinary workers, nursing homes, and also the general public.

Umbilical myiasis in a human newborn.

The new-world screw-worm fly, Cochliomyia hominivorax, is an obligate ectoparasite of domestic and wild animals, and in some cases may affect humans. Myiasis in the human neonatal period is a rare occurrence and almost exclusively found in neotropic areas. Although umbilical myiasis is well-recognized in animals, infestation of human umbilical cord and abdominal tissue is a rare occurrence. Once the diagnosis has been made, the treatment is usually straightforward and uncomplicated. In this article, a newborn infant from an urban area is reported with umbilical myiasis caused by fly larvae of C. hominivorax. The blowfly causing this infestation belongs to the family Calliphoridae (Diptera) and the genus Cochliomyia that usually infests only open wounds of animals.

Identification of screwworms, Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), with a monoclonal antibody-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (MAb-ELISA).

Myiasis caused by screwworms, Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel), is devastating to warm-blooded animals and economically important to livestock producers. It is difficult to distinguish these pests, immature screwworms, from immatures of other non-pest fly species that often occur in animal wounds; it would be helpful to have tools available that do not rely on morphological characteristics. We developed two monoclonal antibodies (MAbs), highly specific for the screwworm, and used them in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (MAb-ELISA), that differentiated screwworm eggs, larvae, pupae, and adults from those of the closely related secondary screwworm, C. macellaria (Fabricius) as well as Phormia regina (Meigen), Phaenicia sericata (Meigen), Calliphora vicina Robineau-Desvoidy, and Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart). In a blind study, the microplate MAb-ELISA, which took about 4h to complete, displayed high specificity (99%), sensitivity (92%) and overall accuracy (97%) in distinguishing all life stages of the screwworm. Electrophoresis results suggested that the two monoclonal antibodies recognized identical conformational epitopes present in all screwworm life stages. The screwworm eradication program, successful in eradicating this pest from the US, Mexico, most of Central America and Libya (after an accidental introduction), could benefit in future eradication, surveillance, and exclusion efforts by developing a reliable field identification kit based on MAb-ELISA that accurately and quickly distinguished cases of screwworm myiasis.

A detector dog for screwworms (Diptera: Calliphoridae).

A male German wirehaired pointer, Canis familiaris L., was trained to search for and locate screwworm, Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel); pupae; and animals infested with screwworms. The command, "find it" led to the detection of a screwworm-infested animal and the command "search" led to the detection of screwworm pupae. After approximately 5 mo of training, the dog could detect screwworm-infested animals. After 3 mo more of training, the dog could detect screwworm pupae. Through 7 August 1989, the dog had a success rate of 100% (265 tests) with training dummies and 94.7% (18 successes for 19 tests) with screwworm-infested animals, for an overall success rate of 99.7% (285 successes for 286 tests). Use of detector dogs at quarantine stations could result in increased efficiency, economic savings, and decreased possibility of reintroduction of screwworms into eradicated areas.

Oral myiasis by screwworm Cochliomyia hominivorax.

We report a rare case of periodontal myiasis by New World screwworm Cochliomyia hominivorax, an obligatory larval parasite, in a 66-year-old woman. The myiasis occurred in the anterior upper jaw associated with a pre-existent generalised periodontitis. About 40 larvae were removed from the lesion. One week later the periodontal tissues were healing normally and the patient was referred to a periodontist. As all of the larvae were in the last stage, they were probably deposited 5-7 days before.

The use of irradiated embryos of Chrysomya bezziana for the detection of the Old World screw-worm fly.

Irradiation of Chrysomya bezziana embryos 1 h before hatching with doses less than or equal to 7 kilorad (kr) had a significant effect on percentage egg hatch, weights and survival of larvae. Doses greater than or equal to 1 kr allowed larval development to the end of the 3rd instar stage in vitro, but prevented normal pupal development. Cattle with wounds infested with 1st instar larvae derived from irradiated embryos had 3rd instar larvae present after 3 d but these failed to pupate. Thus it would be feasible to use such larvae for wound infestation for the enhanced detection of screw-worm fly in areas where the release of fertile flies is undesirable.

Myiasis caused by the New World screwworm fly Cochliomyia hominivorax (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in cats from Brazil: report of five cases.

This paper reports five cases of intact adult male crossbreed cats presenting with myiasis caused by Cochliomyia hominivorax. Three were stray animals that died despite treatment due to the severity of lesions while two were client-owned cats previously treated with cryosurgery which completely recovered. Myiasis caused by the New World screwworm fly in cats appears to be more frequent than previously thought, deserving more attention from both veterinary practitioners and owners.