Case of the Week 606

By Bobbi Pritt, M.D. • September 16, 2020

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This week's case is from Sandeep T, the same individual who contributed the amazing Case 409 from many years past. The current case is less dramatic, but a beautiful example of a classic. The following were seen on skin scrapings from a young man with a 2-month history of severe itching in the back of his left ear. The physician suspected fungal infection and ordered a KOH wet mount of the skin scrapings. This is what was seen. 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 606:

Demodex folliculorum

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.