A 38-year-old man who suffered a violent seizure suffered from a central nervous system infection caused by tapeworm larvae.
A tapeworm already dead
Doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston (United States) began by telling a 38-year-old man, complaining of a violent seizure, that he was in good health. But, the results of a brain scan revealed that the patient was suffering from neurocysticercosis, or central nervous system infection following the presence of larvae of a tapeworm in his brain, report Cnews.fr.
The patient had three brain lesions as well as larval cysts of a it had, already dead, which infiltrated his head 20 years ago. This man, who lived in the region of Guatemala where tapeworm-related diseases exist, should have contracted the parasite while eating a meal prepared by someone who had the disease.
A case “fascinating”
Edward T. Ryan, director of global infectious diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital, told Washington Post that the case of this patient was “fascinating”, because the it had in his brain was already dead and the aftereffects appeared many years later.
“The infection was long gone, but part of his brain was scarred, and it was this scarred area that led to seizures “, explained this manager. As a reminder, it is possible to catch a it had by eating undercooked pork or living in unsanitary conditions.
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