Ankle parasitosis: A Forgotten Problem in Tropical Medicine
- 1. Department of Medicine, Joseph Ayobabalola University, Nigeria
Citation
Wiwanitki V (2018) Ankle parasitosis: A Forgotten Problem in Tropical Medicine. JSM Foot Ankle 3(2): 1050.
EDITORIAL
The parasitic infection is a common problem in tropical medicine. There are several kinds of tropical parasitosis. The infection at ankle is very interesting but little mentioned in the literature. Regarding ankle parasitosis, there are many possible problems. First, the infection by tapeworm should be mentioned. The ankle cysticercosis is reported in the literature and the diagnosis might be difficult for the practitioners who are not familiar with the tropical disease [1]. Similarly, the ankle spargnosis is also observable [2]. The clinical problem is usually the unexplained mass lesion which might exist for a long time. The final diagnosis is usually by the histological examination of the excision specimen. Regarding round worm infection, the cutaneous larva migran caused by hookworm can affects ankle [3]. Nevertheless, the direct involvement of the tarsus by hookworm is also reported in the literature [4]. In addition to hookworm, the larva migran by Toxocara species might occur at ankle.
Therefore, it is no doubt that the parasitosis at ankle is possible. The important consideration is the awareness of the practitioner on this problem. In tropical country, the practitioner might recognize for the possibility and include the ankle parasitosis in differential diagnosis. However, the problem might not be recognized by practitioner in non-tropical countries. In the present day, the disease might be imported to any new setting due to good transportation system and the practitioner has to recognize the possible ankle prasitosis in any patients from endemic tropical countries or patients who have travel history to tropical zone [5].