LOEFFLER'S SYNDROME ASSOCIATED WITH CREEPING ERUPTION (CUTANEOUS HELMINTHIASIS)

Abstract

We have had the opportunity of observing 9 cases of creeping eruption in the dermatology wards and clinics of the Army Service Forces Regional Hospital, Camp Blanding, Florida, that have developed transient pulmonary infiltration during the course of their infection. A preliminary report of these observations is indicated since (a) standard textbooks¹ lead one to believe that this nematodal infection (usually Ancylostome braziliense) is a localized intradermal invasion; (b) a review of the available literature does not reveal a report of associated pulmonary involvement; (c) the clinical course, laboratory and x-ray findings are similar to the migratory pulmonary infiltrations with eosinophilia reported by Loeffler and others.² The dermatologic manifestation of creeping eruption is an accepted clinical entity adequately described in standard textbooks. Kirby-Smith³ suggested the nematodal origin of these lesions. The larvae wandering through the layers of the skin produce the serpiginous, elevated reddish tunnels that are