BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to report the prevalence of the helmintíases in cecal appendices surgically removed. METHOD: Transversal study of prevalence. Analyzed 3.646 reports of cecal appendices from the Instituto de Pathologia de Passo Fundo, from May 01, 1995 to April 24, 2001. RESULTS: The prevalence of helmints on the surgical speciments was 3.07% (n=112), with the enterobiases present in 66.07% (n=74) of the cases, followed by angiostrongyliasis in 20.54% (n=23), multiparasitosis 5.35% (n=6), teniasis 4.47% (n=5), ascariadiasis 2.68% (n=3) and one case of an unidentified worm's egg. Males were 53.57% and 46.43% were females, with mean age of 19 ± 12 years. The histopatological diagnosis of acute appendicitis, occurred in 75.09% of the cases associated to helmintíasis. CONCLUSIONS: It was concluded that helmintíasis histopatological prevalence, in cecal appendices, for possible clinical diagnosis of appendicitis or acute abdome, were similar to the ones described worldwide. The histopatological study can discover helmints or eggs during or after the intervention.
Cecal; Appendix; Appendicitis; Helminths; Parasitic diseases
