A Napa Valley man underwent emergency surgery recently to remove a tapeworm larvae that lodged in his brain that doctors said would have been life-threatening within 30 minutes, according to local media.
Luis Ortiz, a 26-year-old university student, said the headaches began in August, which later turned more serious and caused him to slip into a coma.
After testing at the hospital, doctors found a tapeworm larvae had lodged itself in his brain, which needed to be removed immediately. “I was shocked,” Ortiz said. “I just couldn’t believe something like that would happen to me. I didn’t know there was a parasite in my head trying to ruin my life.”
Ortiz likely contracted the parasite via a foodborne source as he was not positive for the tapeworm, Taenia solium.
He luckily survived the ordeal; however, not without some side effects including issues with his memory.
What Ortiz was suffering from was neurocysticercosis.
What is the pork tapeworm?
Taenia solium is a tapeworm that people get from eating raw or undercooked “measly pork”. The pork meat has cysticerci (the larval stage) which in the human intestine mature to an adult tapeworm. Here the tapeworm attaches to the intestine and produces thousands of eggs.
Does the pork tapeworm cause disease while in the intestine?
Most people are asymptomatic and only become aware of the tapeworm by noticing segments of the worm in their feces. Symptoms of infection, if any, are general: nausea, intestinal upset, vague abdominal symptoms such as hunger pains, diarrhea and/or constipation, or chronic indigestion.
What is cysticercosis?
Human cysticercosis occurs either by the direct transfer of Taenia solium eggs from the feces of people harboring an adult worm to their own mouth (autoinfection) or to the mouth of another individual, or indirectly by ingestion of food or water contaminated with the eggs. When the person ingests the eggs, the embryo escape from the shell and penetrates the intestinal wall, gets into the blood vessels, where they spread to muscle, or more seriously, the eyes, heart or brain.
How serious is cysticercosis?
The severity of cystercercosis depends on which organs are infected and the number of cysticerci. An infection consisting of a few small cysticerci in the liver or muscles would likely result in no obvious disease and go unnoticed. Those that form in voluntary muscle tend to be asymptomatic, but may cause some pain. On the other hand, a few cysticerci, if located in a particularly “sensitive” area of the body, might result in irreparable damage. For instance, a cysticercus in the eye might lead to blindness, or a cysticercus in the brain (neurocysticercosis) could lead to traumatic neurological damage, epileptic seizures or brain swelling that can kill.
Where is cysticercosis a problem?
This condition is relatively common in Mexico and large parts of Central America. In the US, it is seen most frequently in the Southwest , but can be seen in other parts of the country. It is most frequently associated with immigrants to this country.
How long after infection do symptoms of cysticercosis appear?
It may be as short as a few weeks or up to 10 years or more.
Is it treatable?
It can be treated with anti-parasitic drugs like praziquantel and steroid therapy to control brain swelling. Occasionally surgical intervention may be required to relieve symptoms.
How do you prevent this disease?
In the U.S., laws have been passed that requires meat inspection for cysticerci prior to meat being put on the market of human consumption.
Adequate cooking of meat destroys the tapeworm larvae and will prevent infection by tapeworm. Freezing meat to -5C for 4 days, -15C for 3 days, or -24C for 1 day kills the larvae as well.
Good hygiene and hand washing after using the toilet will prevent self-infection in a person already infected with tapeworms in addition to contamination of foodstuffs by human feces.
Robert Herriman is a microbiologist and the Editor-in-Chief of Outbreak News Today and the Executive Editor of The Global Dispatch
Follow @bactiman63
Related:
- The dwarf tapeworm, Hymenolepis nana, cancer cells linked to human tumors: CDC
- Hawaii dengue outbreak up to 15 cases, Outbreaks not unheard of in US
- Chikungunya, West Nile virus and mosquito control in the US: A chat with Clarke’s Dr. Rajeev Vaidyanathan
2 thoughts on “California man, Luis Ortiz, survives tapeworm in the brain”