Parasite nearly 10cm long 'hides' in the eye

Coming to the doctor with persistent eye pain, constant tearing, and tingling, the woman was surprised when doctors found a nearly 10cm long parasite 'hiding' in her eye.

Doctor examines patient after removing parasite from eye - Photo: BVCC

The Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases has just received and treated a rare case: a female patient, NNT (53 years old, residing in Ha Nam ) came to the clinic with prolonged eye pain, a feeling of foreign objects, continuous tearing and tingling.

Before that, she had used eye drops at home but saw no improvement.

At the hospital, after examination, doctors discovered a parasite living in the patient's eye.

Immediately after detection, the parasite was safely removed under sterile conditions. The specimen is currently being analyzed in the parasitology laboratory for identification and further analysis.

According to Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Huyen, Center for On-Demand and International Medical Examination and Treatment, Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, if not detected and treated promptly, parasites can cause prolonged infection, corneal damage, impaired vision, and even blindness.

Dr. Huyen also shared: "This case is a warning that parasites do not only cause diseases in the digestive tract as many people think. In fact, they can invade important organs such as the eyes, brain, lungs, liver, or heart and cause serious complications if not detected early.

More worryingly, parasites can exist silently in the body for months, even years, without showing obvious symptoms.

Some initial symptoms such as unexplained persistent abdominal pain, digestive disorders, recurring allergies, rashes all over the body, rapid weight loss or unusual eye symptoms such as redness, itching, and frequent watering can be easily overlooked.

The source of parasitic infection often comes from unsafe eating and living habits such as eating rare meat, blood pudding, raw vegetables that are not thoroughly washed, drinking raw water or not regularly deworming.

Besides, polluted living environment and unsanitary water sources also contribute to increasing the risk of disease in the community.

The discovery of parasites in the eye is not only a rare case in the medical profession but also a wake-up call about subjectivity in parasite prevention.

"Everyone needs to proactively protect their own health and that of their family with simple but effective actions, starting with maintaining personal hygiene, deworming every 6 months, eating cooked food and drinking boiled water, washing hands with soap before eating and after using the toilet, and maintaining a clean water source and a healthy living environment.

Examination and testing for parasites should be done periodically, especially when even the smallest unusual symptoms appear" - Dr. Huyen recommends.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ky-sinh-trung-dai-gan-10cm-tru-an-trong-mat-20250416153824335.htm