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Scientists from Cambridge thoroughly examined a man several years ago to investigate his headache. The examination of this man took place before similar tests in China.
China
China is very well known as a leading country when it comes to cases of Spirometra erinaceieuropaei, a parasite that spreads across South Korea, Japan and Thailand.
Health problems
In addition to long-lasting headaches this worm also caused weakness and seizures. This man was diagnosed with sparganosis, a parasitic infection caused by the plerocercoid larvae of a diphyllobothroid tapeworm. This infection cannot be treated with medication, therefore the patient underwent a demanding surgery after diagnosis.
Pork tapeworms
Although there are many different species of tapeworms, only three of them can infect the brain, including the pork tapeworm, which is considered the main cause of brain infection.
How infection occurs
A person can usually be infected by this parasite in two ways.
The first is the consumption of poorly prepared pork from infected pigs, which leads to taeniasis, a condition in which the adult larva lives in the intestine.
The second way of acquiring the infection is direct contact with kidneys, which leads to neurocysticercosis, a condition in which larval worms infect the nervous system and brain. This infection is very dangerous because it is likely to cause epilepsy.
Although this infection is most common in some parts of Africa, Latin America and Asia, increased distribution of pork and tapeworms is raising the number of infected individuals worldwide.
As mentioned above, drugs and similar treatments are not very effective, so the most commonly used method is a demanding surgery.
World trade
Global food trade and international travel are worrying because they increase the risk of consuming infected food.
