2024-03-15 06:51:51
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The man is believed to have contracted cyst worm disease due to “improper hand washing” after a tapeworm entered his body. (Photo not related to main text)
4 hours ago
Victoria Lindria, BBC News
A tapeworm larva was recently found in the brain of a man in the United States who had been complaining of frequent migraines. It is thought to be related to eating undercooked bacon.
According to the report, a 52-year-old man sought medical attention because his regular migraine headaches were getting worse and the medication he was regularly taking was no longer working.
A scan revealed a cyst of tapeworm larvae in his brain.
Doctors believe that a man who apparently had tapeworms in his body after eating undercooked pork developed cyst worm disease due to “improper hand washing.”
Cysticercosis is a type of infection caused by the larvae of the parasitic tapeworm Taenia, also known as the pig tapeworm. Cysts may also form in the brain.
People who ingest tapeworms can become infected themselves (autoinfection) with the eggs. Eggs are excreted from the body and can infect people who live together.
Eating undercooked pork does not directly cause cysticercosis.
Doctors said they could “only speculate” that the man contracted cysticercosis as a result of a self-infection after “improper hand washing.”
Because the man “preferred undercooked pork,” doctors speculated that the tapeworm had entered his body based on his “eating habits.”
The man was treated with anti-parasitic and anti-inflammatory drugs and has since made a full recovery.
Due to insufficient hand washing etc.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says tapeworm larvae “invade tissues such as muscle and the brain and form cysts. When cysts are found in the brain, the condition is called cysticercosis.”
“If a person swallows Taenia solium eggs in the stool of a person who has tapeworms in their body, cysticercosis occurs.”
Tapeworm eggs are spread “through contaminated surfaces in food, water, or feces.”
“People can swallow tapeworm eggs by eating contaminated food or by putting contaminated fingers in their mouths.”
“People who have tapeworms in their bodies can become infected themselves (autoinfection) or pass it on to their family members.”
Cysticercosis is not commonly seen in the United States and United Kingdom, where rigorous testing of pork is mandatory.
The disease is common in Latin America, Asia and Africa, especially in rural areas where pigs are free-range and hygiene and food safety measures are inadequate.
Poor handwashing and eating contaminated food or water put people at the highest risk of contracting this type of infection.
The doctors who wrote the man’s case report said, “Cerebral cysticercosis is extremely rare due to causes other than traditional exposure and travel, and it was thought that there were zero such cases in the United States.” It is said that
Doctors also pointed out that this case highlights the risk of self-infection due to the consumption of undercooked pork.
“Historically, encounters with infected pork in the United States have been extremely rare, and this case may have public health implications,” they concluded.
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