Dirofilaria repens in a Pediatric Patient-First Case Report from Switzerland.

Abstract

We report the first case of Dirofilaria repens in a 4-year-old male patient in Switzerland. The disease is a vector-borne parasitic infection that is not endemic to Switzerland. A 4-year-old male presented with a tender mass in the left groin. The patient was taken to the operating room for surgical exploration to rule out a pathology that could be harmful to the spermatic cord. A node was found along the spermatic cord and excised. Histopathology and microbiology studies revealed the diagnosis of Dirofilaria repens . Even though Switzerland is not endemic to Dirofilaria repens , the diagnosis of a parasitic infection should be considered in patients presenting with subcutaneous nodules in correlation with a travel history to endemic areas. The treatment consists of complete excision of the affected tissue.