By John Feng
China Editor
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Doctors removed a live leech from a 5-year-old's throat after the parasite lived there undetected and caused painful symptoms for "over a year."
The young patient was treated in Shuangjiang County, in China's southwestern Yunnan Province, on October 16 while being kept overnight for observation, a hospital report said.
Shuangjiang People's Hospital said the boy from the county's Mengku town had suffered from recurring symptoms including a sore throat, breathing difficulties and snoring in his sleep.
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He had been taken to other facilities for treatment in the past, but his condition persisted for more than 12 months, the hospital said.
According to the report, the parasite measuring 2.75 inches was discovered by ear, nose and throat specialist Zhu Weihong.
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A video released by the facility showed Doctor Zhu reaching into the child's throat with a pair of forceps before pulling the still wriggling leech out the boy's mouth.
Surprised expressions can be seen on the faces of other doctors in the operating room as the parasite emerges and swings back and forth from the forceps, the footage shows.
Zhu said: "This is the leech removed from behind the glottis of a five-year-old boy. It's likely that the leech was what had caused the boy's breathing difficulties."
"It's possible that he drank raw water," the medic added, suggesting that the boy might have ingested an egg or leech in larval form. "If our children in rural areas don't change their sanitation practices, these sorts of cases will continue to exist."
"Parents should be reminded not to let their children drink raw water," he said
Zhu said the "suitable" conditions in the boy's throat make it likely that the parasite had lived there "for over a year" before it was found.
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Commenting on the case, Doctor Yu Zhiqiang, with Ruikang Hospital in Nanning, Guangxi a, told a Guangxi Television: "Leeches can find their way into our bodies via our oral or nasal cavities and live in the upper respiratory tract.
"They live off our blood, and some gradually grow in size. Some patients experience symptoms such as pain or nasal passage obstruction; others show with coughs, sometimes coughing blood.
"Some leeches grow so large that they eventually block the throat, causing breathing difficulties.
"Ideally, we should always treat our foods with high heat, cooking them thoroughly before eating."
Yu explained that it was the most effective way to kill eggs.
Leeches are found throughout China and thrive in temperatures between 50 and 104 degrees Fahrenheit, local media reports said.
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