Doctors found worms living under a woman's eyelid

According to Live Science, an office worker in Beijing (China) contracted a parasitic infection that caused worms to grow under her right eyelid. This is considered a rare medical case.

Doctors discovered and removed a live worm from a woman's eyelid - Photo: Future

The 41-year-old woman, who lives in Beijing, went to the hospital after feeling like there was something in her right eye. When doctors examined her eye, they found signs of damage to the outer surface of her eye, specifically the cornea.

They prescribed eye drops to protect her eyes from further irritation and reduce the risk of infection, then sent her home.

Live worms found under eyelid

However, a month later, the woman returned to the hospital because her eye had become red and itchy, and she still felt like there was something in it. Upon re-examination, doctors noticed that the tissue under her upper eyelid was unusually red, inflamed, and swollen. That's when they made a startling discovery. There were four live white worms wriggling under her eyelid.

After anesthetizing the area, the medical team used forceps to carefully remove the worm from the woman's eye and sent the sample to a lab for analysis.

Under the microscope, doctors noticed that the worms had elongated bodies covered with tiny cut-like marks. One end of the body had a mouth-like structure, and the other end had sharp spines.

Genetic testing revealed that the worms belonged to the species Thelazia callipaeda , also known as the Oriental eyeworm. This is the main worm that causes a parasitic disease called thelaziasis .

Eyeworms are usually transmitted to animals by flies. These flies feed on the tears of livestock and pets such as dogs and cats. As they feed, the flies release T. callipaeda larvae into the animal's eye. Once in the eye, the larvae develop into adult worms, reproduce, and produce new larvae that are ready to be ingested by other flies, continuing the infection cycle.

Rare disease in humans

Cases of T. callipaeda infection have been reported in animals throughout Asia and Europe. In North America, eyeworm disease can be caused by similar parasites, such as the California eyeworm ( Thelazia californiensis ) or the cow eyeworm ( Thelazia gulosa ).

Humans can also get eyeworms, but they are rare. They are most common in people who live in agricultural areas or around livestock. Globally, China has the highest number of human eyeworm infections, with 653 cases reported between 1917 and 2018.

Symptoms of eyeworms in humans include itchy and swollen eyes, excessive tearing, development of eye ulcers, and in severe cases, blindness.

Doctors aren't sure how the woman got the worms in her eye, especially since she works in an office and doesn't recall any recent exposure to flies. However, she did have an American Shorthair cat that had an "eye condition," according to a report of her case published in the journal BMC Ophthalmology in late November.

However, because she refused to have her pet tested, it is impossible to conclude the exact source of her infection.

After the worms were successfully removed from her eye, she was prescribed an antibiotic eye ointment to use daily to prevent any further bacterial infection. Within a week, her symptoms had improved dramatically. Two months later, she appeared to be completely cured.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bac-si-phat-hien-giun-song-duoi-mi-mat-cua-mot-phu-nu-20241204174221408.htm