Year: 2025 | Month: September | Volume: 12 | Issue: 9 | Pages: 19-22
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijrr.20250904
When Diagnosis Makes the Difference: A Simple Management of Cutaneous Larva Migrans in Traveler
Ida Ayu Trisna Wulandari1, Putu Eksa Bidja1, Putu Krisna Yamadewi1
1Hydro Medical Clinic, Badung, Bali, Indonesia.
Corresponding Author: Ida Ayu Trisna Wulandari
ABSTRACT
Background: Cutaneous Larva Migrans (CLM) is a zoonotic dermatosis caused by the percutaneous penetration and intraepidermal migration of hookworm larvae, typically Ancylostoma braziliense and A. caninum. It is endemic in tropical and subtropical regions and has increasingly been reported among international travelers. Although clinical diagnosis is often straightforward, misdiagnosis can occur in atypical or early presentations.
Case presentation: A 31-year-old female traveler from UK, presented to our clinic with an intensely pruritic, serpiginous erythematous lesion on the dorsal aspect of her left foot after returning from a month-long trip to Thailand. The lesion had developed two weeks prior and worsened despite initial treatment with topical azole antifungals. Physical examination revealed a characteristic 10 cm serpiginous plaque, consistent with CLM. Treatment with oral albendazole 400 mg daily for five days and cetirizine 10 mg led to symptom resolution within one week, leaving only post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation.
Conclusion: CLM should be considered in patients presenting with serpiginous skin eruptions and a recent history of travel to endemic areas, especially tropical beaches. Heightened clinical awareness is essential to ensure accurate and prompt management, particularly in tourism-heavy regions such as Indonesia.
Keywords: Cutaneous Larva migrans; Creeping Eruption; Hookworm; Travel-Related Dermatosis;
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