In a story almost too ridiculous to believe, a man stunned doctors when it was revealed what was causing him health issues.
Indigestion happens now and again, and it is more than normal, but you hope you never end up like this one man.
A patient from India complained to doctors about having indigestion after eating, but the true cause was actually a three-centimeter cockroach.
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Yup, somehow the creepy critter had managed to get inside this 23-year-old man’s body and was still alive. But how did it even get there?
Well, the man said he had eaten some street food at a night market a few days before and believed that was the source of his health issues.
However, the gastroenterologist speculated that the insect could have also crawled down his throat while he slept.
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Dr Shubham Vatsya, senior consultant in gastroenterology, went into greater detail regarding the bizarre incident and how they managed to remove it.
Per the Indian Express, he said: “Even we were surprised as to how the cockroach managed to stay intact.
“For the last two-three days, the patient was suffering from indigestion and bloating after eating food. It was during routine inspections that we incidentally spotted the cockroach.”
After identifying the creepy crawly problem, they advised having an upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, a procedure that examines the upper part of the GI tract to find out the cause of the abdominal pain and indigestion.
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Dr Vatsya added: “We activated the suction button on the scope, effectively sucking the cockroach into the suction channel, leading to its removal from the body and saving the man’s life.”
He explained that a live cockroach in the small intestine could have actually proved to be life-threatening. So, a lucky escape for this unnamed man.
The story has also spread to social media platforms, and people on Reddit can’t believe the bizarre twists and turns of the incident.
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One disgusted user wrote: “I'm going to pretend I didn't read that and move on with my life.”
Another questioned how the cockroach survived and commented: “I bet it hit that stomach acid and bolted for the nearest crevice - right through the pyloric sphincter bypassing a lot of the process that would have otherwise killed it."
A third commented: “Whenever they talked about a nuclear disaster, they said cockroaches would be the most likely critter to survive the radiation. Now we know they can also survive inside your intestines quite impressive.”
And another added: “I guess it’s time to stop eating. Intravenous nutrients from here on out.”
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Which is fair; I don’t think I’ll ever eat anything ever again after this story... then again, lunch?
Gerrard Kaonga