Man swallows 30cm long live eel to 'cure' stomach ache
Told to use folk remedies, a man in China swallowed an eel and had to be hospitalized to have it surgically removed.
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Doctors removed an eel from the stomach of a man from Anhui province. Photo:Shanghaiist. |
Earlier this month, a man went to a hospital in Hefei, Anhui Province, complaining of severe abdominal pain. He initially did not explain what was wrong, but after an ultrasound revealed a foreign object in his intestines, the truth was revealed.ShanghaiistdayAugust 29th.
The man later said he had a stomach ache and was told to use folk remedies to treat it, including swallowing a live eel. However, about 30 minutes after swallowing the animal, he immediately regretted it. After 20 hours of enduring the pain, the man had to ask his son to take him to the hospital for emergency treatment.
After hearing the story, doctors quickly performed emergency surgery to successfully remove the 30cm long eel from the patient’s body. The animal caused some internal injuries but the man’s health soon stabilized.
This is not the first time eels have been used as a folk remedy. Last year, a man in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, nearly died after inserting a live eel into his anus due to chronic constipation.
Previously, in 2010, a man in Sichuan province died after a friend jokingly inserted an eel into his "back door". The eel gnawed at his intestines, causing severe injuries that eventually led to his death.