liver fluke [AS, lifer + floc] , a parasitic trematode belonging to the class Trematoda, with six genera that may infest the liver. The most important species affecting humans in industrialized countries is Clonorchis sinensis, which is usually acquired by eating freshwater fish containing the encysted larvae. The larvae are released in the duodenum, enter the common bile duct, and migrate to other bile ducts, the gallbladder, and pancreatic ducts. The liver fluke may survive for many years in the human biliary tree, releasing eggs into the feces. Infestations are most likely to result from ingestion of raw, dried, salted, or pickled freshwater fish and can be prevented by thorough cooking of such fish.
