Repeated Dientamoeba fragilis infections: a case report of two families from Sydney, Australia

Damien Stark; Joel Barratt; John Ellis; John Harkness; Deborah Marriott

doi:10.4081/idr.2009.e4

Repeated Dientamoeba fragilis infections: a case report of two families from Sydney, Australia

Infect Dis Rep. 2009 Nov 10;1(1):e4. doi: 10.4081/idr.2009.e4. eCollection 2009 Sep 14.

Authors

Damien Stark¹, Joel Barratt¹, John Ellis², John Harkness¹, Deborah Marriott¹

Affiliations

¹ Division of Microbiology, SydPath, St. Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia; ; Department of Medical and Molecular Biosciences, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, Australia.
² Department of Medical and Molecular Biosciences, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, Australia.

Abstract

We report cases of two unrelated families who both presented with recurrent Dientamoeba fragilis infections. Subsequent antimicrobial therapy resulted in the clearance of D. fragilis and total resolution of gastrointestinal symptoms in both families. This report highlights the potentially recurrent nature of D. fragilis infections and the need for laboratories to routinely test for this organism.

Keywords: Dientamoeba fragilis..

Publication types

Case Reports