Background and Aims
Although a common pathogen in much of Asia, liver flukes are believed to be a rare
cause of disease in the United States. In this series, we describe 3 patients diagnosed
with Clonorchis sinensis during ERCP within 1 year at our institution.
Methods
Three patients referred to a large community hospital underwent ERCP with direct visualization
of a worm in the biliary tree and subsequent histopathologic confirmation.
Results
The patients had variable clinical presentations, and 2 had repeat negative stool
studies for ova and parasites. Each patient had imaging studies showing abnormalities
within the biliary tree, after which ERCP was performed with direct visualization
and extraction of a wormlike structure. It was confirmed that all 3 patients had emigrated
from China within the last decade. The epidemiologic data and the histopathologic
characteristics of the fluke eggs in utero were consistent with a diagnosis of C sinensis.
Conclusions
The diagnosis of clonorchiasis should remain on the differential diagnosis for patients
with nonspecific biliary symptoms who have known risk factors for this uncommonly
common pathogen.
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: August 03, 2022
Accepted:
July 26,
2022
Received:
May 23,
2022
Footnotes
DISCLOSURE: All authors disclosed no financial relationships.
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 by the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy
