Amoebic liver abscess

Amoebic hepatic abscess
Gross pathology of liver containing amoebic abscess
Specialty	Infectious diseases

A amoebic liver abscess is a type of

Approximately 90% of patients with E histolytica are asymptomatic.[2] The two most common manifestations of E histolytica include colitis (bloody stool with mucus, abdominal pain, and/or diarrhea), and discovery of a liver abscess on imaging.^[2] Liver abscesses commonly present as right upper quadrant abdominal pain and fever, with worsening features associated with abscess rupture.^[2]

Symptoms

• Pain right hypochondrium referred to the right shoulder
• Pyrexia
  (100.4 F)
• Profuse sweating and rigors
• Loss of weight
• Earthy complexion

Signs

• Pallor
• Tenderness and rigidity in right hypochondrium
• Palpable liver
• Intercostal tenderness
• Basal lung signs

Diagnosis

Diagnosis is primarily made by identifying stool ova and parasites on stool antigen testing in the presence of colitis, or E histolytica serology.^[2]

• Blood ceruloplasmin
• Haemoglobin
  estimation
• Stools examination (trophozoites and cysts)
• Radiography
• Aspiration
  exploratory
• Medical ultrasonography and CT scanning
• Sigmoidoscopy
• Liver function tests
• Serological
  tests

Treatment

Although medical management using long courses of antibiotics have proven to be successful, Drainage of the abscess is the mainstay treatment. ^[3]

Research

Due to the difficulty of exploring host and amebic factors involved in the pathogenesis of amebic liver abscess in humans, most studies have been conducted with animal models (e.g.,