Chinese doctors pull 10cm live worm from grilled food lover’s brain
The 26-year-old Chinese man’s epileptic fits were caused by the tapeworm, which was probably ingested in an undercooked meal
Doctors in southeast China have extracted a 10cm live worm from the brain of a grilled food lover.
The parasite was discovered by specialists at the leading hospital in Nanchang, Jiangxi province, after local doctors in his Jian home could find no medical cause for the 26-year-old man’s recent onset of epilepsy.
The man, identified only by his surname Liu, was operated on at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University on Monday.
Dr Wang Chunliang, who led Liu’s treatment, said blood tests had revealed the presence of Spirometra mansoni, a kind of tapeworm, in his brain.
“The worm was still alive when we took it out,” said Wang. “It was springy, white all over, and could swim.”
According to a report in the Jiangnan City Daily, the creature was believed to have found its way into Liu’s brain from contaminated or undercooked food that he had eaten.
Liu’s love of grilled food, which he ate regularly, was the likely cause of the problem. He said he had been in general good health until recent months, when he had started suffering a series of epileptic fits.