Before anything else seemed wrong, a woman in the Philippines suddenly experienced about a minute of uncontrollable shaking in her right arm and right leg. She had no headache, weakness, or confusion, and the episode sent her to the emergency department.
As Ars Technica reported, doctors saw on MRI a bright cluster of nodules in her left frontal lobe with surrounding fluid, an appearance that quickly raised suspicion that worm eggs had lodged in her brain.
Here's what to know
In the Philippines, the blood fluke species most commonly encountered is Schistosoma japonicum. In the New England Journal of Medicine, doctors described the woman's condition as suspected neuroschistosomiasis, an uncommon complication of infection with a Schistosoma parasite.
Certain aquatic snails become infected after eggs shed by infected people or animals in urine or feces reach water and hatch.
The parasite later leaves the snails as a larval stage called cercariae. These larvae can penetrate unbroken skin and then travel through the bloodstream, passing through the lungs, heart, and liver before maturing into adult worms.
Much of the harm comes from eggs that get stuck in tissue, where they can cause inflammation, scarring, and organ-specific complications. Adult worms, by contrast, may persist in blood vessels without obvious symptoms.
TCD Picks » Quince Spotlight
💡These best-sellers from Quince deliver affordable, sustainable luxury for all
More background
This species, Schistosoma japonicum, is found in the Philippines, China, and part of Indonesia. It has, however, been wiped out in Japan, so the name is no longer an accurate guide to where the parasite actually turns up.
Where can I learn more?
Similar cases have surfaced in very different forms, from rat lungworm in California to schistosomiasis concerns tied to snails in Europe and Brazil. Related coverage includes a newly identified tick-borne virus in China and a human screwworm case in a traveler returning from Central America.
• In California, officials warned that rat lungworm is expanding in wildlife and needs closer surveillance.
• In China, scientists identified a tick-borne virus that can infect the human brain.
• U.S. officials confirmed the first human screwworm case in a traveler returning from Central America.
• In Europe, snail-borne parasites carrying a potentially deadly disease raised fears about wider spread.
• In Brazil, scientists built a new method to understand how schistosomiasis spreads from invasive snails.
Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here.
