Warning: Distressing content. A boy who was admitted to hospital with a cough, and blood in his saliva, turned out to have a leech deeply embedded in his lung and feasting on his blood
A young boy who was admitted to hospital with breathing difficulties turned out to have a problem straight out of nightmares. As doctors were treating him, the seven-year-old coughed up a writhing 12cm-long leech.
The boy, named Xiaoxiang, was coughing up blood when doctors at Pu’er People’s Hospital in China’s Yunnan Province examined him. Medics in the hospital’s paediatric department carried out an atomisation inhalation treatment – where liquid medications are turned into a vapour that can then be inhaled.
After breathing in the medicated mist for a few moments, Xiaoxiang horrified doctors by dramatically coughing up a living five-inch parasite.
Doctors examined the grisly object, and confirmed that it was a live leech measuring some 12cm in length. Doctors immediately carried out an electronic bronchoscopy on the child to clarify whether there were any other parasites in the young lad’s body.
Fortunately, after a thorough and detailed examination of Xiaoxiang’s airways, no other parasites were found
Leeches are a parasitic worm most commonly found in fresh water, and the best-known species – Hirudo medicinalis – feeds on blood, secreting a chemical after biting to prevent the wound from healing. When found on the skin, they can be safely removed by hand, since they do not burrow into the skin or leave the head in the wound.
But in this unusual case, the creature had somehow found its way deep into the young boy’s lung, causing a serious infection. It was soon established that the leech had been living in Xiaoxiang’s lungs for quite a while.
His treatment involved a deep clean of his lungs, and removal of blood clots in the area, as reported by NeedToKnow. This proved to be successful and Xiaoxiang’s lungs were restored so that he could recover.
If attempts were unsuccessful to remove the leech, the creature could eventually have grown large enough to block the child’s airways, causing suffocation. Xiaoxiang’s family live in a rural area in China, and they often go to the village’s river in their free time.
It is thought that during one of the visits, the leech must have found its way into Xiaoxiang’s trachea after he inhaled eggs or larvae into his airways. The moist environment provided by the boy’s body, including oxygen and blood, provided an ideal space for the leech to develop. Thanks to the efforts carried out by medical staff, Xiaoxiang was able to make a full recovery.
