Case report of laryngeal infection by Clinostomum complanatum 24 days after ingestion of raw fish

Clinostomum complanatum is a laryngeal fluke whose hosts include birds and mammals.[1] In humans, infection occurs accidentally during the consumption of raw freshwater fish.[1,2]. A 59-year-old female presented to our hospital with throat pain and globus sensation. The patient had been prescribed Proton Pump Inibitor for 3 weeks at another hospital. The patient continued the medication, but the discomfort persisted, and she was admitted to our hospital for further examination. The patient had eaten raw fish 24 days before, and the symptoms occurred after eating the raw fish. Endoscopy under sedation showed a fluke, with an approximate length of 8.0 mm and width of 3.2 mm, on the interaryepiglottic fold, with active motility on the mucosa. It was extracted from the larynx using biopsy forceps and identified as C complanatum. After the fluke was removed, symptoms improved, and the patient was discharged. The globus symptoms completely resolved at the last follow-up visit. To the best of our knowledge, this is an endoscopically diagnosed and treated case of human infection by C complanatum in Korea after the longest period of infection. This suggests that C complanatum can survive for up to 3 weeks or more in the gastrointestinal tract. Endoscopy is a useful tool for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with atypical extraesophageal symptoms who do not respond to Proton Pump Inibitors.