Parasitic tapeworm eggs densely in the man's body
A 74-year-old patient in Taiwan was hospitalized with memory loss, weak health, and difficulty walking.
He said that for many years he had been in the habit of eating rare pork and beef and had not suffered from any illness. Recently, he suddenly developed unusual symptoms: he could not walk, had memory loss, and was weak.
At the hospital, the X-ray results revealed hundreds of tapeworm eggs parasitizing most of the patient's body parts such as the brain, spine, neck, chest and legs. In some areas of the muscles, the worms formed nests that were dead and calcified.
Doctors believe the patient contracted neurocysticerosis from eating meat contaminated with pork tapeworm larvae. The larvae form cysts that affect various body parts and the brain, causing seizures.
The patient was treated with anti-parasitic and anti-seizure drugs to reduce pressure on the brain. The patient's health then showed signs of recovery, and his cognition gradually improved.
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X-ray images show tapeworm eggs scattered throughout the patient's body. Photo: The Sun |
Last month, an 18-year-old boy in India died after being in a coma due to tapeworm cysts in his brain. Doctors at ESIC Medical College and Hospital Faridabad found parasitic cysts in the outer layer of the patient's brain.
