Parasite infestation 15 centimeters worm lived for a long time in the eye of a man

Doctor gets 15 centimeters long worm from the eye of a man

In India, a 15-centimeter-long worm was removed from the eye of a 60-year-old patient. The man had gone to the clinic because he suffered from pain and itching in his eyes. Further medical examinations revealed that the patient also had worms in his blood.

Worms in the eyes

Although it is not commonplace, it does happen that people see worms in their eyes. Last year, for example, a teenager in Mexico had a live eye worm operated on, causing serious damage to the boy's eyesight. At the beginning of the year, 14 worms were even removed from a woman's eye in the US. And now a video on the Internet causes a great stir, in which one can see how a patient a 14 centimeters long worm is pulled out of the eye.

In India, doctors have removed a 15-centimeter-long worm from a man's eye. The parasite had to stay alive when it was pulled out. (Image: vchalup / fotolia.com)

Worm had to be removed immediately

A 60-year-old man sought medical help at the New Medical Center in Kundapur, a city in the Indian state of Karnataka, according to the British Daily Mail newspaper.

According to the information, the patient had complained of eye pain and severe eyestrain.

The attending physician Srikanth Shetty quickly realized what was responsible for the symptoms: a parasitic worm that, according to the physician, could have permanently damaged the man's eyesight.

The expert therefore decided to remove the worm immediately.

Parasites in the blood

In a video that is not really for the faint-hearted, you can see the eye doctor pulling the worm out of the patient's eye.

After the parasite was removed, it turned out to be a roundworm of the genus Wuchereria bancrofti. The animal measured a full 15 inches.

"The challenge was to get the worm alive because killing in the eyes would have caused complications," Dr. Shetty to local reporters.

"It was also difficult to hold him as he moved. The patient also had worms in his blood and was treated with medications. "

Worldwide, millions of people are infected

According to the newspaper report, it is unclear how the man captured the worms.

Usually the parasites are transmitted by mosquito bites.

An estimated 120 million people, mostly in Central Africa, South and Central America and Asia, are infected with the worm.

In the eye, however, it is rarely found. (Ad)