Dr Sam Ghali, an emergency medicine physician who regularly shares medical case studies on social media, on Monday shared the image of the CT scan of the limbs of the patient suffering from what he called an "infamous parasitic infection" caused by the ingestion of the larval cysts of Pork Tapeworm, whose scientific name is Taenia Solium.
"Humans become infected with T. Solium by ingesting cysts that can be found in undercooked pork," Ghali said in his post explaining what the scan showed.
Around five to 12 weeks after consumption, these cysts evolve within the gastrointestinal tract into mature adult tapeworms, in a condition known as Intestinal Taeniasis, the doctor said.
In certain people, the larvae can end up travelling to the brain and form cysts in the brain tissue, leading to headaches, confusion, seizures, and other serious neurologic problems, Dr Ghali explained.
The chilling image shows tiny, rice grain-like particles all around the bones in the patient's lower body
"So the moral of the story here is do your best to keep clean, always wash your hands, and never, ever eat raw or undercooked pork," Dr Sam Ghali said.
Here’s one of the craziest CT scans I’ve ever seen
— Sam Ghali, M.D. (@EM_RESUS) August 25, 2024
What’s the diagnosis? pic.twitter.com/DSJmPfCy9L
What is the treatment for this condition?
Dr Ghali said patients have treatment options such as anti-parasitic therapy, steroids, anti-epileptics (neurocysticercosis) as well as surgical removal.
Dr Ghali's chilling post, which shocked X users, has over six million views and over 1,600 users commenting on it.
