Doctors urged people to take necessary vaccines and to observe all notes and suggestions regarding travel and attire in jungles, adding that people should visit medical facilities if they find wounds or bug bites after returning from abroad.
Mackay Memorial Hospital Department of Oral Medicine Doctor Liu Chung-chi (劉崇基) yesterday said his department recently received a patient, a 33-year-old man surnamed Chen (陳), who complained about worsening pain in his lips.
Chen said that he had visited Machu Picchu in Peru and stayed at a local hostel in the jungle region in October last year.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
Discovering a small wound on his lips in November last year, he said he visited a dermatology clinic after the wound had failed to heal after two weeks.
Chen exhibited a minor condition of papules near the wound, which resembled an insect bite, which was initially diagnosed as herpes, Liu said.
However, upon further assesment, it was evident that three wounds had failed to heal and showed signs of “movement” within, resulting in a changed diagnosis of being infested with a form of larvae, he said.
Liu said he tried to remove the larvae without anesthetics, but Chen could not bear the pain.
Liu said he then arranged for Chen to undergo general anesthesia and removed the larvae after 15 minutes of surgery.
The larvae were sent to the lab and National Taiwan University Department of Entomology Professor Hsia Hsu-feng (蕭旭鋒) confirmed that it was the larvae of the Gasterophilus intestinalis, also known as horse botfly.
Liu said the country has only seen two previous cases of horse botfly larvae infestation, both of which were on the scalp, adding that this was both the first recorded incident of larval lip infestation in the country and the first encounter of it in his career.
The larvae had hatched from eggs because Chen’s previous visits to clinics had misdiagnosed the symptoms, Liu said.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
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