A 23-year-old male with intussusception caused by parasitic flatworm infection acquired by eating sushi

Abstract

A 23-year-old male presented to our emergency department with symptoms of intermittent abdominal discomfort, cyclic vomiting, and decreased appetite. The patient had a history of recurrent flatworm infection without recent travel, but a history of often consuming undercooked seafood in the form of sushi. The patient was found to have small bowel intussusception on computed tomography. Intussusception is a rare diagnosis with a bimodal distribution favoring the pediatric population with an increase in incidence again among the elderly. The pathophysiology of the condition requires the presence of a “lead point” which is typically a tumor in the elderly patient, but there is no identified common cause of intussusception in the sporadic cases of intussusception in healthy young adults. Intussusception should be considered in young adults with cyclical abdominal pain, and consideration should be given to helminthic infection in those with endemic travel or raw food consumption. The following core competencies are addressed in this article: Patient care, Medical knowledge.