Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Tuesday, August 05, 2008
5 things you didn't know about ... Myiasis
What is it? If you feel like your skin is crawling, you could have a case of myiasis. It occurs when fly maggots invade your body. Various forms of myiasis depend on the area affected — skin, body cavity, gastrointestinal tract, wound. In the United States, myiasis is primarily seen in people who have recently traveled to Central or South America or Africa. Cases acquired in North America are rare and primarily subdermal or ophthalmologic forms of the infestation.
Symptoms: These include a boil, painful swelling, necrosis, discharging wound, meningitis, visual disturbances, diarrhea and vomiting.
Treatments: Petroleum jelly or mineral oil can be used to force the maggots to the skin’s surface, where they can be extracted. Sometimes a local anesthetic and an incision may be necessary. The drug Ivermectin, used in animals, has proven to be effective in humans.
Prevention: Practice adequate hygiene, keep all wounds clean and covered and don’t eat food that has been infected with fly larvae. When traveling to exotic places, use a repellent and a mosquito net.
Case report: An article in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology reports that in October 2002, a 60-year-old woman from Florida who was vacationing in Europe went to Hotel-Dieu Hospital in Paris. She reported a three-week history of whooping cough with bloody sputum, without fever. Before arriving in the emergency ward, she coughed up bloody sputum that contained a large, living brownish fly maggot. The next day, the woman’s cough had disappeared. Given the patient’s recent travel history, experts conclude she was infected in Florida.
Source: McClatchy Newspapers
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