Background: Larvae of the sheep botfly (Oestrus ovis) normally have sheep or goats as host. In humans the larvae can survive for a short time in the nose or under the eyelids, after which they die or are sneezed out.
Case description: We describe a 47-year-old woman who during a stay in the Cape Verde Islands developed symptoms of sneezing, a swollen face and an itchy feeling in her nose. These symptoms were due to an infestation of three fully-developed larvae of the O. ovis species in her sinus maxillaries which were later evacuated by endoscopy.
Conclusion: In exceptional cases larvae of the O. ovis species can fully mature in a healthy person after a visit to an endemic area. Development into the mature stage has only been described in patients with a poor mucosal immune response.