Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology of Parasitic Infestation in Soft Tissue

연부조직의 기생충 감염의 세포학적 소견

In the past, parasitic diseases were a major problem in public health in Korea. In recent years, however, nematodiasis that used be prevalent are no longer a serious problem. Instead some cestodiasis, particularly cysticercosis and sparganosis have become comparatively more important in recent years. Parasitic infestation of soft tissue is presented as a subcutaneous nodule or mass with nonspecific clinical manifestations. We experienced 4 cases of parasitic infestation in the soft tissue diagnosed by fine needle aspiration (FNA). Three out of four cases were histologically confirmed, two out of four cases were cysticercosis and one case was confirmed as sparganosis. FNA may be useful in providing a diagnosis in cases of parasitic infestation.