Blastocystis hominis infection
Boreham, R.E.; Benson, S.; Stenzel, D.J.; Boreham, P.F.
Lancet 348(9022): 272-273
1996
ISSN/ISBN: 0140-6736 PMID: 8684227 Document Number: 459311
The case of a 25-year-old immunocompetent female who developed an acute febrile diarrhoeal illness and who was admitted to hospital in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, is reported. Faecal examination revealed the presence of a few vacuolar cysts of Blastocystis hominis and copious spherical refractile bodies 6 micro m in diameter. Transmission electron microscopy identified these bodies as Blastocystis cysts. They were commonly multinucleate, with an elliptical band of condensed chromatin often containing a small dense spot in the nucleus. Large amounts of glycogen were present: more than was seen in B. hominis cysts from previous samples. The patient's symptoms resolved over 10 to 12 days without treatment. It is suggested that further studies were required to determine whether this unusual isolate is a separate species from B. hominis.