Case of the Week 581

By Bobbi Pritt, M.D. • February 19, 2020

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This week's case was donated by Theodore Trejo. The following were seen in skin scrapings collected from a middle-aged man complaining of itching. The motile objects measure approximately 0.3 mm in length. See a video of this parasite here. What's the identification?

Read Dr. Pritt's blog, Parasite Wonders, and submit your answers, comments, and questions. Also, visit her website ParasiteWonders.com, which hosts an archive of classic images from cases Dr. Pritt posted going back to 2007 (in an easy-to-search "A through Z" format) and also offers a flashcard feature.

Answer to Case 581:

Demodex folliculorum, the human follicle mite.

Bobbi Pritt, M.D.

Bobbi Pritt, MD, MSc, is a Professor of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology and the Director of the Clinical Parasitology Laboratory at Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota. She is also the Chair of the Division of Clinical Microbiology. Her research interests are in clinical parasitology, vector-borne diseases and the pathology of infectious diseases.