This Week in Parasitism TWiP 265: Things that jump are cleaner than things that squat
TWiP solves the case about the parasite check in summer camp, and presents a new case about a woman who traveled to Brazil and developed furuncles on the back of her head.
Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Daniel Griffin, and Christina Naula
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- Hero: Francesco Redi
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francesco_Redi
- Linda Hall Library, Kansas: https://www.lindahall.org/about/news/scientist-of-the-day/francesco-redi/
- Habermehl, G., (1994). Francesco Redi—Life and work, Toxicon 32 (4) https://doi.org/10.1016/0041-0101(94)90292-5.
- Letters read on TWiP 265
From Eyal Leshem, a returning case "provider"
43 years old female who travelled to Brazil on May 2025 for a two week dance class. The dance school is located in a farm two hour drive West of Rio de Janeiro.
Upon return to Israel she started feeling pricking and "movements" and under her scalp on the back of her head. She noted three non-healing furuncles on the back of her head A month after she returned movement and pricking in the back of her scalp increased, the furuncles enlarged and produced serous discharge. Several days before her ED visit she thinks an "object" dropped from the back of her scalp, but being outdoors, she could not locate the object.
On physical examination she is afebrile and her vitals are normal, and on the back of her head two indurated were detected under the hair on the back of her head. Serous discharge was produced by pushing the furuncles. A non-surgical office procedure led to immediate recovery and confirmed the diagnosis.
What was the parasite? What was the procedure?
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Music by Ronald Jenkees