- A man who felt something moving around his eye was told there were parasites in his eyelid and nothing could be done
- Feeling hopeless, he turned to social media users in desperation and has trended widely, but no solution has emerged yet
A Chinese man with parasitic worms underneath his left eyelid has turned to mainland social media for help after doctors said they had no idea how to treat him.
The man, surnamed Liu, from Henan province in central China, trended online this month after he sought advice from the online public on how to get rid of the parasites.
He said several doctors from the leading hospitals had informed him that they had been unable to find treatment solutions for him, Henan Broadcasting System reported.
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A video Liu posted online showed his left eyelid curled up, revealing the eyelid’s surface to be lumpy and uneven. Later in the video, he stretches his eyelid to reveal curve-shaped parasites.
Liu said he did not notice anything until late last month when during dinner with his family, he felt like something was moving around his left eye.
Despite this, Liu said he did not think it was severe, especially after his parents reassured him that it was a common neural reaction and nothing to be concerned about.
However, in the following days, his symptoms continued, and the sensation of movement became more intense and painful. When he saw what looked like worms in his eye, he was shocked and went to a local hospital.
A doctor there told him parasites had grown inside his left eyelid but said no treatment was available.
Liu was unconvinced and turned to other hospitals for help. However, he got the same response. When Liu asked whether they could operate on his eyelid, the doctors all said the parasites would move to another area once his eyelid started bleeding.
One of the doctors, with more than 40 years of professional experience, told him that parasites like to inhabit harsh environments.
“He’s seen many patients who had parasites on their eyeballs, but it’s his first time seeing parasites inside the eyelid,” Liu said.
Feeling hopeless, Liu turned to social media users in desperation.
His story has since gone viral on mainland social media, and at the time of writing, a trending news report had received more than 13,000 comments.
One person said: “It sounds scary. Hope the parasites can be removed soon.”
Another asked: “But how unhealthy a lifestyle has he been living?”
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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.
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