Botfly Infestation in a Teenage Boy
July 01, 2008
An infected insect bite was initially diagnosed, and a course of oral trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole was started. Eight days later, the patient returned with worsening symptoms and a "white thing poking in and out" of one of the lesions (A). He was advised to occlude the lesion with petroleum jelly and an adhesive bandage. The next day, the patient brought in the "creature" that had emerged from the lesion. It was subsequently identified as a larva of the human botfly, Dermatobia hominis. A second larva emerged from the other lesion 1 week later.