Main image via UNILAD + Favy + FamilyDoctor.org
If you’re squeamish, we suggest looking away as what you’re about to read may give you goosebumps.
via GIPHY
A woman who had been suffering from a sore, irritated throat for five days, recently had a long, black worm removed from her tonsils!
Doctors at St Luke’s International hospital, Tokyo, Japan, retrieved the worm from the 25-year-old patient’s left tonsil using tweezers, where it had reportedly been “moving”.
After removing it from the woman’s throat, the worm was discovered to still be alive and measured in at 38mm long and 1mm wide.
Image via UNILAD
The 25-year-old’s symptoms “rapidly improved” after the removal procedure and her blood test results came back normal.
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) identified the worm as being a nematode roundworm – one of several parasites which can infect people who eat raw meat or fish.
Findings from this case were published in the study which noted that the genus Pseudoterranova is an uncommon nematode (or “roundworm”) from the Anisakidae – a family of intestinal nematodes that can cause “gastric, intestinal, ectopic, and allergic diseases” if ingested.
Image via Biodiversidad Virtual
The woman who had the worm removed from her throat confirmed that she had indeed eaten a meal of assorted sashimi five days before the removal.
The study notes that the pseudoterranova primarily infects the stomach after a person has consumed third-stage larvae in either under-cooked or raw marine fish. Over 700 such cases have been reported throughout Japan, North Pacific countries, South America, and the Netherlands.
“Although oropharyngeal infeaction is rare, this infection is known to cause ‘tingling throat syndrome’ and cough and should be considered a differential diagnosis of oropharyngeal parasitosis as consuming raw fish, including sushi and sashimi, has become more popular and the number of reported cases has markedly increased worldwide,” the study’s authors wrote.
Image via Favy
The journal goes on to explain that the worm that was removed from the woman’s throat was a fourth-stage larva but the infection began and was caused back when it was in its earlier third-stage.
We definitely have goosebumps just from hearing about the worm!
Do be careful when you’re eating sushi or sashimi and if you’re not feeling well, get a doctor or professional to check you out. You never know when that simple sore throat could actually be a worm!
Share this with your friends and family so they’ll be cautious too!
Info via UNILAD