Myiasis

Myiasis is usually caused by flies of the Calliphoridae family is the etiological agent most frequently found in myiasis. The first case of myiasis in a diabetic foot of a 54-year-old male patient in Argentina is reported. The patient attended the hospital of the capital city of Tucumán Province for a consultation concerning an ulcer in his right foot. The identification of the immature larvae was based on their morpho logical characters, such as the cylindrical, segmented and tracheas with strong pigmentation.

This study was carried out between July 2007 and June 2008 and reports on the occurrence of human myiasis caused by the New World screwworm, Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in São Gonçalo in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Liquid or solid vaseline was used to suffocate the larvae, which were then preserved in 70% ethanol and sent to the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz for identification. C. hominivorax were identified in all 22 cases of myiasis. There were 12 male and 10 female patients with ages ranging from 03 to 71. 

This applies once an infestation is established. In many circles the first response to cutaneous myiasis once the breathing hole has formed, is to cover the air hole thickly with petroleum jelly. Lack of oxygen then forces the larva to the surface, where it can more easily be dealt with. In a clinical or veterinary setting there may not be time for such tentative approaches, and the treatment of choice might be more direct, with or without an incision. First the larva must be eliminated through pressure around the lesion.

In the US, demand for these fly larvae doubled after the FDA ruling. Maggot therapy is now used in more than 300 sites across the country.The American Medical Association and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently clarified the reimbursement guidelines to the wound care community for medicinal maggots, and this therapy may soon be covered by insurance.The larvae of the green bottle fly are now used exclusively for this purpose, since they preferentially devour only necrotic tissue.