Teen Suffering Migraines and Epileptic Fits Had Four-Inch Long Tapeworm Living in His Brain for Two Years

A teen suffering migraines and epileptic fits had a four-inch tapeworm living in his brain for TWO YEARS.

Disgusting footage shows the the parasite after doctors removed it from 19-year-old Wen Xiaoli's head in just two minutes.

It is believed he became infected with the spirometra erinaceieuropaei larvae two years ago when he accidentally cut his hand while killing a frog for food .

He then quickly began to experience intense migraines and even mild epilepsy, leading him to seek out experts in the city of Changsha, capital of Central China’s Hunan Province.

He also suffered paralysis and loss of memory and even speech.

After detailed scans of his head at Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, doctors were stunned when they discovered he was suffering from sparganosis - a tapeworm infection.

Not only was the parasite fully formed, it was also alive and appeared to be living comfortably off his brain cells.

Neurosurgeon Yang Zhiquan and his team advised Wen to operate, and they opened up his skull to retrieve the writhing tapeworm in a swift two minutes.
It was not, however, an easy task, as Doctor Yang later explained: "It was alive; it was still moving inside the brain.

"We had to remove it intact and couldn't risk breaking its body or else it would continue to survive inside.

"That’s why we had to pull it out slowly and carefully."

The worm measured a staggering 11 centimetres (4.33 inches) in length and had been given ample time to develop from a larva into the full-blown brain-eating parasite.

Yang added: "Parasitic infections are very rare, but the larvae are able to move all around the body and once in the brain it will feed off brain cells to survive.

"At the same time, these parasites excrete toxic waste that is harmful to the brain - so much so that it could cause nerve damage and brain cell loss."

The medic added that serious symptoms of sparganosis include epilepsy, paralysis, the loss of memory and even speech.

The teenager, now recovering from his operation, said of the ordeal that started two years ago: "I remember I was skinning a frog at the time when I cut my finger, and the larvae must have entered through the wound.

"No wonder my finger itched so much in the days that followed, but I didn’t think too much about it - how was I supposed to know that it was a worm?"

SOURCE: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/teen-suffering-migraines-epileptic-fits-10126781

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