Spinal cord Schistosomiasis : A child's case with an unsatisfactory outcome that mimicked an intramedullary neoplasm. A rare case report

Abdikarin Ahmed Mohamed; Mihret Gebrehiwot Mengistu; Hansa Haftu; Mohammed Mustefa; Abdisalam Abdullahi Yusuf

doi:10.1016/j.amsu.2022.104708

Spinal cord Schistosomiasis : A child's case with an unsatisfactory outcome that mimicked an intramedullary neoplasm. A rare case report

Ann Med Surg (Lond). 2022 Sep 15;82:104708. doi: 10.1016/j.amsu.2022.104708. eCollection 2022 Oct.

Authors

Abdikarin Ahmed Mohamed¹, Mihret Gebrehiwot Mengistu¹, Hansa Haftu¹, Mohammed Mustefa¹, Abdisalam Abdullahi Yusuf²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pediatrics, and Child Health, College of Health Science, Mekelle University, Tigray, Ethiopia.
² Department of Pediatrics, and Child Health, Mogadishu Somalia Turkish Training and Research Hospital, Mogadishu, Somalia.

Abstract

Neuroshcistosomiasis is a life-threatening complication of schistosomiasis. Its prevalence in endemic populations is believed to be underreported at 1-4%. We report a four-year-old child who came to our hospital relatively late since the presentation of weakness and incontinence. MRI revealed long segment (T12-L1) ill-defined intramedullary lesions with cord extension having patchy enhancements. Despite the administration of both praziquantel and pulse prednisolone treatment, there was no convincing result. We thus question the role of steroids and praziquantel in individuals with late-diagnosed spinal schistosomiasis.

Keywords: Necrosis; Praziquantel; Prednisolone; Spinal cord schistosomiasis.

Publication types

Case Reports