Occurrence of gravid Loa loa in subconjunctival space of man: a case report from West Bengal, India

Loa loa a benign filarial eye worm is endemic in tropical rain forests areas of west and central Africa. Reports of its sporadic recovery from India are available mostly from the travellers and miogrants. This is the fifth report from India in 100 years. One 10.5 cm long gravid female eye worm Loa loa was recovered from the subconjunctival area of a 50 year old Indian lady with history of trekking in swamp areas in the Himalayas in Kumayun district. She was suffering from recurrent attacks of swelling, pain and redness of right eye and fleeting itchy rashes all over the body. Slit lamp examination revealed an indistinct coiled structure in the sub conjunctival space. Through a small nick, the structure was pulled out and was found to be a live worm which was identified as a gravid female species of Loa loa.