Man's Life Saved After Tapeworm Removed from Brain

A California man who was feeling sick almost died recently from a shocking cause.

一个加利福尼亚的病人最近几乎死于一个令人震惊的原因。

26-year-old Luis Ortiz went to a hospital because of a headache and nausea. When doctors examined him, they were shocked to find a tapeworm larva in his brain.

26岁的路易斯·奥尔蒂斯因为头痛和恶心而去了医院。当医生检查他的时候，他们震惊地发现他的大脑中有绦虫幼虫。

The story gets stranger. The larva was still alive.

这个故事变得陌生了。幼虫还活着。

The creature had caused a cyst to form inside his head. The cyst was restricting the flow of liquids to different areas of his brain. The situation was so serious that doctors said they had to perform an emergency operation to remove the larva.

这个生物在他的脑袋里形成了一个囊肿。囊肿限制了液体流向他大脑的不同区域。情况非常严重，医生说他们必须进行紧急手术来清除幼虫。

The Associated Press reports that a doctor who operated on Ortiz told him he had only 30 minutes to live. The California man told ABC News that when the doctor pulled the worm out of his head, it was still moving.

美联社报道，一位在奥尔蒂斯做手术的医生告诉他只有30分钟的生命。这位加利福尼亚人告诉美国广播公司新闻，当医生把蠕虫从他的头上拔出来时，它还在动。

Luis Ortiz was a student at California State University in Sacramento. He began experiencing headaches in late August, he told a local newspaper. But Ortiz said he did not think the headaches were serious.

路易斯·奥尔蒂斯是萨克拉门托加州州立大学的学生。他在当地一家报纸上说，八月底他开始头痛。但奥尔蒂斯说，他认为头痛不严重。

In September, he visited a friend and his parents in another city. That is when the pain got worse. His mother reportedly saw Ortiz throwing up. She took him to a hospital emergency room.

九月份，他去另一个城市拜访了一位朋友和他的父母。那是疼痛加剧的时候。据报道，他的母亲看见奥蒂斯呕吐。她把他带到医院的急诊室。

Ortiz told ABC News that he was "shocked." He said he "couldn't believe something like that would happen" to him. He said he did not know there was a parasite trying to ruin his life.

奥蒂斯告诉美国广播公司新闻，他“震惊了”，他说他“不敢相信会发生这样的事情”。他说他不知道有一种寄生虫想毁掉他的生活。

The doctors saved Ortiz's life. However, the surgery also affected it. According to ABC News, Ortiz had to drop out of school and move back home. It said, for now, he is not permitted to work or drive a vehicle.

医生救了奥尔蒂斯的命。然而，手术也影响了它。据美国广播公司新闻报道，奥尔蒂斯不得不辍学回家。据说，目前，他不允许工作或驾驶车辆。

Tapeworms and other parasitic worms usually infect a person's intestinal system. In rare cases, they infect the brain.

绦虫和其他寄生虫通常感染人的肠道系统。在极少数情况下，它们会感染大脑。

Doctors suspect Ortiz ate something containing the tapeworm. You can get a tapeworm from food that is unclean, and contaminated with tapeworm eggs. People can get them from eating infected, undercooked or uncooked pork. Another type of tapeworm can infect beef.

医生怀疑奥蒂斯吃了含有绦虫的东西。你可以从不干净的食物中得到绦虫，并且被绦虫卵污染。人们可以从吃受感染的、未煮熟或未煮熟的猪肉中得到它们。另一种绦虫可以感染牛肉。

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the U.S. has about 1,000 reported cases of tapeworms each year. The CDC adds that tapeworms are more common in developing countries with poor public health systems.

美国疾病控制和预防中心说，美国每年报告了大约1000例绦虫病例。疾病预防控制中心补充说，绦虫在公共卫生系统差的发展中国家更常见。

According to CDC officials, signs of infection with a parasitic worm include stomach pain, nausea, loss of appetite and weight loss. Others signs are a lasting headache and vomiting.

据疾控中心官员称，感染寄生虫的症状包括胃痛、恶心、食欲不振和体重下降。其他症状是持续的头痛和呕吐。

The best way to avoid a tapeworm infection is to wash fruits and vegetables. Also, make sure meat is cooked thoroughly. The CDC suggests cooking all meats to an internal temperature of at least 63 degrees Celsius.

避免绦虫感染的最好方法是清洗水果和蔬菜。另外，确保肉煮熟。疾病预防控制中心建议所有肉类的内部温度至少为63摄氏度。

Separately, the CDC says tapeworms could spread cancer. This comes after studying the case of a Colombian man who died after "catching" the disease from a tapeworm that had infected him.

另外，疾病控制中心说绦虫可以传播癌症。这是在研究一个哥伦比亚人“感染”了一种绦虫后死亡的案例之后发生的。

I'm Anna Matteo.