You should wash your hands when you return from a hike or after touching an animal. A Florida resident is now taking these hygiene instructions to the letter after finding himself with 150 bugs in his nose due to bad practices during fishing trips.
150 insects in his nasal cavity
In early February, after feeling tired and dizzy since last October, the man, whose identity was not revealed, began to feel his face burning.
“Within a few hours my face started to swell, my lips were swollen, and I could barely speak.”“, explains the patient in a report covered by First Coast News huffpost. “I couldn't even get up to go to the bathroom without my nose bleeding.”
The American then went to the hospital where he was treated by ear, nose and throat physician Dr. David Carlson. The specialist tried to understand the origin of the disorder using a camera inserted into the nose. Then he discovered with amazement that there were many insects and larvae in his nasal cavity. Some were the size of the tip of a little finger. Beyond the disgusting aspect, the insects pose a real danger to the patient: they feed on the tissues of the sinuses and nose.
“I knew he had major problems, and there was erosion happening near the base of the skull, near his eye and his brain.”“, explains Dr. Carlson to the journalist. The medical staff tried to remove the intrusors using suction, but they were too large. So it was necessary to remove them one by one with pliers. In total there were 150.
“They were right at the base of his skull, under his brain. If they had been able to penetrate it, they could have killed him.”The doctor adds. The insects have since been sent to an epidemiologist to determine their species.
Maggots in the nose: bad fishing habits to blame?
The patient who will be followed up several times during the year must recover. But the question remains: How did the insects settle in his nose?
One hypothesis is that the larvae reached the nasal cavity of this fishing enthusiast thanks to his bad habits during his favorite activity, especially handling fish. “I used to wash my hands in the river, and now I use sanitizer to do a better job and I don’t touch my nose or hands anymore.”The patient confirmed to the American media.
Furthermore, the young animal has certainly benefited from his weakened immune system since surgery for neuroblastoma a few years ago. The cancerous tumor was removed through his nose.
Although this condition is very rare, Dr. Carlson took advantage of this incident to remind the general public, especially people Immunodeficiency, the importance of hygiene measures after being outside or in a dirty environment.
