Journal of The Academy of Clinical Microbiologists

Register      Login

VOLUME 17 , ISSUE 2 ( July-December, 2015 ) > List of Articles

Original Article

Amoebic vs pyogenic liver abscesses: A comparative study in a tertiary care hospital

Ardra R. Menon, Pushpa K. Kizhakkekarammal, Girija K. Rao

Keywords : Amoebic, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Entamoeba histolytica, liver abscess, pyogenic

Citation Information : Menon AR, Kizhakkekarammal PK, Rao GK. Amoebic vs pyogenic liver abscesses: A comparative study in a tertiary care hospital. 2015; 17 (2):89-93.

DOI: 10.4103/0972-1282.171889

License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Published Online: 15-07-2024

Copyright Statement:  Copyright © 2015; Wolters Kluwer India Pvt. Ltd.


Abstract

Background and Objectives: Liver abscess is a potentially life-threatening condition with a majority of cases being amoebic in tropical countries. In India, poor sanitary conditions and low socioeconomic status contribute to the endemicity of amoebiasis. As treatment modalities are different for amoebic and pyogenic liver abscesses (ALA and PLA, respectively), it is necessary to differentiate them. Facilities for amoebic culture are not available and microscopy is nondiscriminatory, hence serological tests are greatly relied upon for the identification. No studies have been done so far in our region on patients admitted with liver abscess. The aims of this study were to find the aetiology of liver abscess in admitted patients and to know the proportion of amoebic liver abscess using serological techniques. Materials and Methods: The study was done for 6 months and the sample size was 50. The ultrasonography (USG)-guided aspirates were subjected to microscopy and aerobic and anaerobic cultures on appropriate media. Serum samples of all patients were examined for Entamoeba histolytica immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) along with 35 control samples. Results: Of the 50 patients, 34 were diagnosed as amoebic by (ELISA) (68%), 11 as pyogenic (22%) and five as indeterminate (10%). Alcohol was found to have a higher association with ALA than with PLA. Of the 34 amoebic liver abscesses, only four (8.8%) showed motile trophozoites. The mortality rate was only 2.2%. Conclusion: Rapid diagnosis with serology and prompt treatment can result in reduced hospital stay in cases of ALA.


PDF Share
  1. Sifri CP, Madoff LC. Infections of the liver and biliary system. In: Mandell GL, Bennett JE, Dolin R, editors. Mandell, Douglas, and Bennett's Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases.7th ed. Edinburg: Churchill Livingstone; 2010. p. 1035-44.
  2. Sharma N, Sharma A, Varma S, Lal A, Singh V. Amoebic liver abscess in the medical emergency of a North Indian hospital. BMC Res Notes 2010; 3:21.
  3. Cosme A, Ojeda E, Zamarreño I, Bujanda L, Garmendia G, Echeverría MJ, et al. Pyogenic versus amoebic liver abscess. A comparative clinical study in a series of 58 patients. Rev Esp Enferm Dig 2010;102:90-9.
  4. Cerwenka H. Pyogenic liver abscess: Differences in etiology and treatment in Southeast Asia and Central Europe. World J Gastroenterol 2010;16:2458-62.
  5. Tanyuksel M, Petri WA Jr. Laboratory diagnosis of amebiasis. Clin Microbiol Rev 2003;16:713-29.
  6. Collee JG, Fraser AG, Marimon BP, Simmons A. Mackie and McCartney Practical Medical Microbiology. 14th ed. Delhi: Churchill Livingstone; 2006.
  7. Lodhi S, Sarwari AR, Muzammil M, SalamA, Smego RA. Features distinguishing amoebic from pyogenic liver abscess: A review of 577 adult cases. Trop Med Int Health 2004;9:718-23.
  8. Sharma MP, Ahuja V. Amoebic liver abscess. J Indian Acad Clin Med 2003; 4:107-11.
  9. Mohsen AH, Green ST, Read RC, McKendrick MW. Liver abscess in adults: Ten years' experience in a UK centre. QJM 2002;95:797-802.
  10. Seeto RK, Rockey DC. Pyogenic liver abscess. Changes in etiology, management and outcome. Medicine [Baltimore] 1996;75:99-113.
  11. Mukhopadhyay M, Saha AK, Sarkar A, Mukherjee S. Amoebic liver abscess: Presentation and complications. Indian J Surg 2010;72:37-41.
  12. Jha AK, Das A, Chowdhury F, Biswas MR, Prasad SK, Chattopadhyay S. Clinicopathological study and management of liver abscess in a tertiary care center. J Nat Sci Biol Med 2015;6:71-5.
  13. Ghosh S, Sharma S, Gadpayle AK, Gupta HK, Mahajan RK, Sahoo R, et al. Clinical, laboratory and management profile in patients of liver abscess from northern India. J Trop Med 2014 4;2014:142382.
  14. Abbas MT, Khan FY, Muhsin SA, Al-Dehwe B, Abukamar A, Elzouki AN. Epidemiology, clinical features and outcome of liver abscess: A single reference center experience in Qatar. Oman Med J 2014;29:260-3.
PDF Share
PDF Share

© Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers (P) LTD.