Eosinophilia

Overview

The differential diagnosis of eosinophilia is vast, but helminth infections are a very common cause of eosinophilia in refugee patients and should be ruled out first before investigating other etiologies (unless the clinical presentation suggests another cause).

Stepwise Approach

1. Rule out strongyloidiasis and schistosomiasis - These are the most important parasitic infections to exclude
2. Look for other helminth infections - Stool ova and parasites examination
3. Test for other parasites if initial tests negative
4. Look for other causes - The complete work-up for these potential causes is however outside the scope of this resource