Photo: Education Images/UIG (Getty).
I’m a big enough man to admit when something is simply too much to handle. The following video is indeed that, so don’t feel bad if you only make it all of 16 seconds before having to turn away (and possibly forfeit your lunch to the nearest toilet bowl depending on how recently you ate).
Just the word “maggots” invokes a gag reflex in most people. Whenever you hear of someone finding them in their food or perhaps washed up on the beach while noshing on a severed human penis (don’t ask), it simply makes you sick to your stomach.
However, it couldn’t possibly compare to how this dentist felt while working on a recent case of oral myiasis in India (WARNING: if you value your appetite, use your imagination):
Video Shows Dentist Removing Maggots From Woman’s Gums
Again, I made it 16 seconds. I’d love to discuss the video in more detail, but– wait a minute, no I wouldn’t. Not at all.
However, here’s a little more detail on the technical end. While this level of rotting flesh is usually reserved for the gums of the deceased, in this case, it’s believed to be a severe case of oral myiasis a.k.a. fly disease. This is essentially when fly larvae burrow into the skin and, well, we’ll let the CDC take it from there.
Long story short, this kind of thing is rare considering the gums don’t usually provide ideal living conditions for fly larvae, but makes exceptions in cases of “low socioeconomic status, immunocompromised state, debilitated, and unhygienic living conditions” if they are extreme enough. If the dentist thinks it was frightening, I’d go ahead and assume this was a qualifying example.
it was my first time seeing patient with oral myiasis. So scary tho
— mariam weber (@_nisabdh) October 23, 2017
h/t Unilad
