Answer to Case 29
The objects were infertile Ascaris eggs.  The image below (Figure A) shows infertile and fertile Ascaris eggs for comparative purposes.  Infertile Ascaris eggs can be difficult to identify because of variations in size, shape, and surface of the egg shell.  Infertile Ascaris eggs tend to be larger and more elongate than fertile Ascaris eggs and they measure approximately 80 to 95 micrometers long by 40 to 50 micrometers wide.  The shell can either be mammillated, mammillated with a grossly distorted surface, or relatively smooth without mammillation (similar to decorticated fertile eggs).  Infertile Ascaris eggs may be seen in early infections where the female worms have not yet mated, or in areas of low exposure where the chance of single sex infections is higher.  The health concerns of an Ascaris infection are the same whether fertile or infertile eggs are passed, so treatment would be recommended.

A