]. Its aim is to establish clear recommendations so that primary care clinicians will be able to diagnose, manage, and treat this disease.
The document recommends that serologic screening for schistosomiasis be considered for the following patients: asymptomatic individuals who have come from endemic regions and were exposed to freshwater sources; those who present with symptoms consistent with those of the disease; and patients for whom clinical exams or lab tests suggest acute schistosomiasis . Screening for chronic schistosomiasis is indicated if the necessary resources for diagnosis and treatment are not available.
Joaquín Salas, MD, director of the Tropical Medicine Unit at Poniente Hospital in El Ejido and the document's first author, explained these difficulties."In Spain, we currently have the problem where the care of migrant patients varies greatly between the different autonomous communities — and even within an autonomous community, depending on geographical areas. This variability is caused, in large part, by the number of migrants that they serve.