Tropical pyomyositis associated with Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense infection in a Europid.

A 29-year-old European woman became infected with Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense in the Luangwa valley, Zambia. Six days after the initial presentation of this infection she developed evidence of tropical pyomyositis (TP). These diseases, both of which are rare in Europids, were satisfactorily treated. The pathogenesis of TP, which is nearly always caused by Staphylococcus aureus, is undetermined. It seems possible that in this case either (i) both infections were introduced simultaneously by a tsetse-fly bite, or (ii) T. b. rhodesiense produced multiple focal necroses in skeletal muscles which acted as niduses for the staphylococcal infections; immunodepression caused by this parasite might also have been important.