Adult female Loa loa filarial worm - Extracted from a patient's conjunctiva in the left eye

Description:

Loa Loa - filarial worm. This was extracted from a patient's conjunctiva in the left eye. It was still moving on extraction and measures 55mm in length by 0.5mm in width. Patient was originally from East Africa - parasite infection by this worm is rarely found in the UK. In all cases seen in UK the infection arose abroad. This is an adult female worm.