Tungiasis in Travelers From Tropical Africa

TUNGIASIS is an inflammatory condition of the skin produced by the invasion of the pregnant female sand fleaTunga penetrans.1With the increased tourist trade to Africa, attention of travelers should be called to the existence of this parasite and the need for early therapy to prevent sepsis. We report five patients with tungiasis. Report of Cases An opportunity was presented recently to study a tour party of 19 women traveling to Africa to review native arts and crafts. The tour director mentioned the possibility of tungiasis in her general discussion of the health aspects of the trip. No one of the party gave a history of walking barefoot or even walking outside in the sand or dirt. The tour director informed the people that sheets hung outside and touching the ground were able to permit the brown sand fleas to spread into the bedrooms. Five of the 19