ABSTRACT
The genus Paragonimus covers a large group of flatworms that are associated with parenchymal and/or pleural lung infections. Morphological features useful for the identification of Paragonimus adult worm include size and shape, the patterns of lobation of the ovary and testes, and the appearance of the tegumental spines. Paragonimus species exhibit a circuitous life cycle that involves a mammal as definitive host and aquatic snails and crustaceans as specific and sequential intermediate hosts. The human paragonimiasis may be categorized as acute paragonimiasis, chronic pleuropulmonary paragonimiasis and ectopic paragonimiasis. Given its largely nonspecific symptoms, clinical diagnosis of paragonimiasis based on clinical observations, radiological findings, dietary history, and travel history is insufficient and inconclusive. A number of laboratory animals have been attempted as experimental models for Paragonimus species, including rodents, namely rats, mice, Syrian hamsters, and Mongolian gerbils, dogs, and cats, with varied success.
