This is quite scary. Scientists have discovered an unknown species of the Guinea worm (Dracunculus medinensis) in a Vietnamese man. The infection happened last year when a 23-year-old man visited a hospital with abscesses on his limbs and neck. Doctors pulled out five adult worms, each around 1 to 2 feet long, from the man’s wounds, as well as larvae.
Doctors and experts initially thought that the man had contracted Guinea worm disease, a sickness that health workers have worked hard to eradicate for decades. The doctors behind the mysterious case published their report in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases. After confirming with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, they have concluded that the man did not get Guinea worm disease. The doctors concluded that the man’s worms bore a closer physical resemblance to reptile-loving worms. The identity of the worms that got into the man’s system remains a mystery.
Image credit: Olivier Asselin (AP)