Mysterious lump moving around woman’s face was actually a parasitic worm
It caused her top lip to swell and itch a little, resulting in a burning sensation.
A strange lump that appeared to move on a woman’s face turned out to be a parasitic warm crawling beneath her skin.
The 32-year-old from Russia first noticed the small bump below her left eye. Five days later, it moved to her upper left eyelid.
The lump them migrated to her top lip, causing it to swell and itch a little, resulting in a burning sensation.
The woman reported having no other symptoms.
After a visit to the ophthalmologist, tests revealed a string-like parasite called dirofilaria repens below the skin.
Dirofilaria repens is generally found in dogs, cats, foxes and other wild mammals but can infect humans as the larvae is spread by infected mosquitoes.
The woman reported travelling to a rural area near the Russian capital of Moscow where she was bitten by mosquitoes.
The worm was surgically removed using special forceps and the woman made a full recovery.
The case study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).
