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Case #269 – February, 2010

A 29-year-old woman had complaints of abdominal cramping and diarrhea that had been persisting for 5 days. She went to a local clinic to determine what was causing her illness. A stool specimen was collected in formalin and sent to the State Public Health Laboratory for routine ova-and-parasite (O&P) examination. A wet mount preparation was made after concentrating the specimen and was examined. The technician noticed suspicious round objects and suggested that a Kinyoun’s modified acid-fast stain be performed. Figures AC show what was found on the acid-fast stained fecal smear. What is your diagnosis? Based on what criteria?

Figure A

Figure B

Figure C

Images presented in the DPDx case studies are from specimens submitted for diagnosis or archiving. On rare occasions, clinical histories given may be partly fictitious.

DPDx is an educational resource designed for health professionals and laboratory scientists. For an overview including prevention, control, and treatment visit www.cdc.gov/parasites/.