A Case Study of Human Infection with Cysticercus cellulosae (Cestoda: Taeniidae) Found in Okayama Prefecture, Japan
An imported case of human cysticercosis found in Okayama Prefecture, Japan is reported. The patient (F.G.) is a 39-year-old male living in Okayama City who has immigrated into Japan as a Japanese orphan from Northern China early in March, 1993. On mid-April 1993, the patient noticed the presence of a small swelling on the skin surface of his right lower chest. He then visited Department of Dermatology, Okayama City Hospital on July 8th, 1993. Receiving an extirpation of the swelling a nodule with fibrous capsule was found in subcutaneous tissue. On histological examination, a single tapeworm larva having a protoscolex and numerous calcareous corpuscles was found in the capsulated nodule. The larval tapeworm found was identified as Cysticercus cellulosae, the pork tapeworm, Taenia solium Linnaeus, 1758 based on morphological characteristics of the rostellum armed with chitinous hooklets and cup-like muscular suckers on the protoscolex. To our best knowledge, present report is the first case of human cutaneous cysticercosis in Okayama Prefecture, Japan.
