Morphological and Molecular Characterizations of Cochliomyia hominivorax (Diptera: Calliphoridae) Larvae Responsible for Wound Myiasis in French Guiana.

Myiasis is an ectoparasitic infection caused by the larvae of true flies (Diptera). We came across a rather rare case of myiasis in an immunocompetent 34-year-old man from French Guiana with advanced wound myiasis masquerading as cavitary myiasis and a history of cholesteatoma surgery in the left ear. The Diptera larvae responsible for the disease were isolated and identified using morphological and molecular approaches as Cochliomyia hominivorax. We underline the importance of this parasitosis as the second case of myiasis caused by C. hominivorax and the first case of wound myiasis in this overseas department of France and its incidence in pre-urban areas of the capital, Cayenne, in South America.

Updates on the worldwide burden of amoebiasis: A case series and literature review.

BACKGROUND: Amoebiasis is an intestinal and tissue parasitic infection caused by the protozoan Entamoeba histolytica. Despite significant medical importance and worldwide dispersion, little is known about the epidemiology and distinct geographical distribution of various clinical forms of amoebiasis in the world. In this study, we present an amoebiasis case series referred to Avicenne Hospital (Bobigny, France) from 2010 to 2022 followed by an overview of the released literature to explore diverse clinico-pathology of amoebiasis and to update the actual epidemiological situation of this parasitosis worldwide. METHODS: The referred patients underwent a combination of clinical and parasitological examinations and imaging. The study was followed by an overview of released literature performed based on PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guideline. RESULTS: A total of 15 patients with amoebiasis were diagnosed with an average age of 48.5 years old at the occurrence time of infection. Men (78%) were the most affected patients. Most of the cases were reported following a trip to endemic regions, such as Mali, India, Nepal, Algeria, Cameroon or Congo. All of the processed patients exhibited a hepatic amoebiasis. Amoebic abscess was observed in all cases with an average size of 6.3 cm. Of these patients, seven cases (46.7%) benefited from drainage following a risk of rupture or superinfection of the abscess. A compilation of findings extracted from 390 scientific publications via seven major medical databases, allowed us to update the main epidemiological and clinical events that has led to the current worldwide expansion of amoebiasis. We presented a clinical and epidemiological overview of the amoebiasis accompanied with a worldwide illustrative map displaying the current distribution of known amoebiasis foci in each geographical ecozone of Asia, Europe, Africa, Americas, and Australia. CONCLUSIONS: Although Metropolitan France is not known as an endemic region of amoebiasis, amoebic liver abscess was the most frequent clinical form observed among our 15 patients processed. Most of infected patients had a history of travel to or lived-in endemic areas before arriving in France.

Effect of Household Laundering, Heat Drying, and Freezing on the Survival of Dermatophyte Conidia.

Dermatomycoses are one of the most common dermatological infectious diseases. Dermatophytoses, such as tinea pedis (athlete's foot) in adults and tinea capitis in children, are the most prevalent fungal diseases caused by dermatophytes. The transmission of anthropophilic dermatophytoses occurs almost exclusively through indirect contact with patient-contaminated belongings or environments and, subsequently, facilitates the spread of the infection to others. Hygienic measures were demonstrated to have an important role in removing or reducing the fungal burden. Herein, we evaluated the effectiveness of physical-based methods of laundering, heat drying, and freezing in the elimination of Trichophyton tonsurans, T. rubrum, and T. interdigitale conidia in diverse temperatures and time spectra. Based on our findings, laundering at 60 °C was effective for removing the dermatophyte conidia from contaminated linens. On the contrary, heat drying using domestic or laundromat machines; freezing at -20 °C for 24 h, 48 h, or one week; and direct heat exposure at 60 °C for 10, 30, or 90 min were unable to kill the dermatophytes. These results can be helpful for clinicians, staff of children's communities, and hygiene practitioners for implementing control management strategies against dermatophytoses caused by mentioned dermatophyte species.