Risk Factors and the Character of Clinical Course of the Echinococcus multilocularis Infection in Patients in Poland.

Alveolar echinococcosis (AE) is a chronic zoonotic disease caused by the larval form of Echinococcus multilocularis. In humans, it may become a serious chronic infection of the liver which resembles a slow malignant process leading to death when untreated. The aim of the study was an assessment of the risk factors of the E. multilocularis infections and the description of AE clinical course in the group of 36 patients with confirmed AE, hospitalized at the Department and Clinic of Tropical and Parasitic Diseases, Poznan University of Medical Sciences between 2013 and 2022. Among the study participants, most patients cultivated land, bred livestock, worked in the forest, or were employed in animal shelters. The E. multilocularis infection was diagnosed based on imaging and immunoassay techniques within 6 months in the majority of patients hospitalized in the Department. All patients hospitalized in the Department initiated anti-parasitic therapy at the moment of the diagnosis. Pharmacological treatment combined with surgery was applied in most of the study participants, who were presented with more advanced stages of infection. We conclude the following: 1. For humans in the risk group, regular abdominal imaging examinations and the detection of specific antibodies against E. multilocularis are recommended. 2. Regular screening tests in the hyperendemic areas of AE would increase the early detection of the disease and to improve the clinical prognosis in this extremely life-threatening parasitic disease.

Prevalence of Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies in Poznan, Poland, after the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

In comparison to other European countries, during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Poland reported a relatively low number of confirmed cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections. To estimate the scale of the pandemic in Poland, a serosurvey of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 was performed after the first wave of COVID-19 in Europe (March-May 2020). Within this study, we collected samples from 28 July to 24 September 2020 and, based on the ELISA results, we found that 1.67% (25/1500, 95% CI 1.13-2.45) of the Poznan (Poland) metropolitan area's population had antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 after the first wave of COVID-19. However, the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies was confirmed with immunoblotting in 56% (14/25) samples, which finally resulted in a decrease in seroprevalence, i.e., 0.93% (14/1500, 95% CI 0.56-1.56). The positive anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG results were associated with age, occupation involving constant contact with people, travelling abroad, non-compliance with epidemiological recommendations and direct contact with the novel coronavirus. Our findings confirm the low SARS-CoV-2 incidence in Poland and imply that the population had little herd immunity heading into the second and third wave of the pandemic, and therefore, that herd immunity contributed little to preventing the high numbers of SARS-CoV-2 infections and COVID-19-related deaths in Poland during these subsequent waves.

Case of Plasmodium knowlesi Malaria in Poland Linked to Travel in Southeast Asia.

We report a case of Plasmodium knowlesi malaria imported to central Europe from Southeast Asia. Laboratory suspicion of P. knowlesi infection was based on the presence of atypical developmental forms of the parasite in Giemsa-stained microscopic smears. We confirmed and documented the clinical diagnosis by molecular biology techniques.

Massive Cryptosporidium infections and chronic diarrhea in HIV-negative patients.

Protozoa of the genus Cryptosporidium are common parasites of domestic and wild animals-mammals, birds, reptiles, and fishes. The invasive forms are thick-walled oocysts, which can be present in water supplies, on fruits, vegetables, or in the soil contaminated with feces. In this work, we describe three cases of middle-aged persons with massive Cryptosporidium hominis infection and chronic diarrhea with no immunological abnormalities and no history of previous travels to tropical countries. The lesions discovered during colonoscopy within the large intestine-cryptitis and the histopathological changes were related to massive cryptosporidiosis. All these statements indicate necessity of parasitological stool examination in cases with chronic diarrhea in which no etiological agents are detected, but not only in HIV positive individuals. Parasite's eradication leads to symptom disappearance as well as improvement of histopathological mucosa alterations.