As of: March 12, 2024, 2:24 p.m
By: Bjarne Kommnick, Vivian Werg
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A man struggles with chronic migraines for months.
In the hospital he receives an extraordinary diagnosis: tapeworm infestation in the brain.
Kassel – There can be many reasons for headaches.
Especially with severe migraines, the quality of life of many sufferers can be severely reduced.
It becomes even more problematic if the pain is chronic and occurs permanently.
A 52-year-old man from the US state of Florida experienced exactly that, as
The Mirror
reports.
However, the reason for his months of suffering was anything but usual.
Man (52) diagnosed with tapeworm infestation after months of migraines
Over the course of four months, the 52-year-old's migraine pain continued to worsen.
Because the man's medication no longer worked, his pain became so unbearable that he went to a hospital in Orlando, The
Mirror
reports.
On site, the doctors gave the man an unusual diagnosis: tapeworm infestation in the brain.
A man who constantly suffered from migraines had a live worm found in his brain (symbolic image) © Andrea Warnecke/dpa
The reason may lie in the man's eating habits.
According to his own statements, the patient often eats undercooked bacon.
The doctors therefore suspected that he might have been infected with neurocysticercosis, a parasitic infection.
CT and MRI scans published in the
American Journal of Case Reports
confirmed the doctors' assumption.
Recently, a man who was struggling with itching also received a serious, unusual diagnosis in the hospital.
“Can be easily overlooked”: Doctors discover consequences of tapeworm in man’s brain
Accordingly, doctors discovered several cysts on both sides of the brain, which were caused by eggs of a pork tapeworm and irritated the tissue of the skull.
“This clinical picture is non-specific and can easily be overlooked, especially if there is a known underlying neurological disease such as migraine,” explain the doctors.
The doctors appeal: “This case makes it clear that neurocysticercosis should be considered when an existing neuropathological disease has a changed appearance or requires a change in therapeutic treatment, even in the absence of obvious risk factors.”
Tapeworm infestation: Neurocysticercosis can be contagious
According to the experts, however, it is not just his “lifelong preference for soft bacon” that is the reason for the man's pain.
Rather, the 53-year-old's breakfast went bad, which was particularly vulnerable due to inadequate cooking.
For therapy, the man was treated with antiparasitic and anti-inflammatory medications.
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According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), there are between 1,320 and 5,050 cases of neurocysticercosis each year in the United States alone.
Cysticercosis is a disease caused by infection with the larval form of Taenia solium, a pork tapeworm.
Pigs serve as intermediate hosts.
The pork tapeworm should therefore not be confused with the dangerous fox tapeworm.
According to experts, people become infected when they consume water or food contaminated with tapeworm cysts.
Neurocysticercosis can be contagious.
The US Department of Health and Human Services agency, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), warns that those affected who do not wash their hands thoroughly after defecation can spread the eggs to other members of their household.
(vw/bk)