This 50-year-old woman was experiencing discomfort during urination and had pain in her side, but these weren’t her only symptoms.
For three months, she’d been seeing worms in her urine.
Her doctors almost didn’t believe her, until they asked her to perform a urine sample and saw the evidence for themselves. There was, in fact, half-centimeter-long larvae in the sample, all of which were easily visible to the human eye.
The doctors immediately proceeded with tests and treatment, discovering that these larvae weren’t actually worms, but rather a type of fly that belonged to the Dipteria species. The woman had developed a case of urinary myasis, an infection of fly larvae that happens when a fly lays eggs in the body and infests a person’s urinary tract.
Although other forms of myasis are common – for instance, in the skin, eyes, nose, or stomach – urinary myasis is the most uncommon. Even then, myasis really only affects those with compromised immune systems that can’t fight off infections. The woman, although she had diabetes, did manage her condition very well.
Her doctors are still speculating over the root cause of her infection. Right now, their only speculation is her recent move. Before moving to South Carolina, the woman had lived in Mexico, where myasis infections are far more common.
This unique medical case forced the doctors to consult literature in order to figure out the best method of treatment. They finally prescribed the woman ivermectin, a drug used to treat parasites, and a week later, new test results showed that the woman’s urinary tract and infection had been cleared.
