A builder has been found with hundreds of parasitic worms in his brain after eating undercooked pork in China, according to Newsweek.
The builder identified as Zhu Zhong-fa, 43, was rushed to First Affiliated Hospital of College of Medicine at Zhejiang University foaming in the mouth and drifting in and out of consciousness.
An MRI scan revealed he had more than 700 worms wriggling in his brain and chest in a condition known as neurocysticercosis.
The condition occurs when parasitic larvae in undercooked pork build-up in the body, eventually invading the central nervous system and triggering seizures.
The builder admitted to eating pork last month. He was rushed to treated last week.
With doctors initially unable to find what was wrong, scans later revealed the source of the problem.
Dr Wang Jian-rong told Pear Video that “there are multiple presences of space-occupying lesions in the patient’s brain, lungs and fills up the muscles inside the chest cavity.”
The medic added that there was already signs of damage to Zhong-fa’s organs, blaming it on undercooked pork.
LADbible reported Dr Jian-rong saying “We tend to have a lot of meat-based meals in our daily lives.
If it is undercooked, the tapeworm eggs will stay alive when ingested. “And if you have had the uncooked meat, there’s a chance the tapeworms can travel through the body and inflict different diseases.”
Neurocysticercosis occurs when the parasitic larvae Taenia solium invades bodily tissue from the intestine, and build ups in the central nervous system, muscles, skin and eyes.
Most cases comes about from eating undercooked pork. Sufferers may also have swallowed microscopic eggs passed in the faeces of a person with an intestinal tapeworm if they do not wash their hands properly after going to the toilet.
This can also lead to the contamination of surfaces or raw food.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says neurocysticercosis is a leading cause of adult epilepsy worldwide and can be entirely preventable.
It is thought to cause around 1,000 hospitalisations a year in the US, with most cases being brought over from regions where the disease is common, like Latin America.
The UK government said some experience no symptoms, while others endure seizures, headache, loss of balance and brain swelling.
In rare cases, the condition can be fatal. Neurocysticercosis can be prevented through proper hand washing and cooking pork thoroughly.
Treatment often involves medication to reduce swelling in the brain and kill the worms.
