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Doctors discover man's mystery headaches are caused by a dozen
MAGGOTS... which saved his life by eating infected tissue after a botched
operation on his skull in Vietnam
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Labourer Pham Quang Lanh had metal plate inserted in head after injury
But the surgery caused his head to swell with a potentially fatal infection
Family spotted maggot infestation after he repeatedly complained of pain
Surgeons say the maggots had eaten the infected tissue but not his brain
By SIMON TOMLINSON FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 21:46 EST, 7 April 2015 | UPDATED: 22:26 EST, 7 April 2015
A man who complained of headaches found they were caused by an infestation of maggots - which
had inadvertently saved him from a deadly infection.
Vietnamese labourer Pham Quang Lanh, 28, had a metal plate inserted over his skull after being
struck by an iron bar on a building site.
But the botched operation caused his head to become swollen with a potentially deadly infection.
Fearing he couldn't afford any further medical treatment, Mr Lanh hoped the resulting headaches
would eventually subside.
It was only when he asked family to look at the wound that they noticed a dozen maggots crawling
under the skin and they took him to the Hanoi's Viet Duc Hospital.
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Grim discovery: Vietnamese labourer Pham Quang Lanh shows the wound in his head where a maggot infestation had
taken hold following a botched operation to repair an earlier head injury with a metal plate
Dr Nguyen Duc Anh, a neurosurgeon at the hospital, said: 'When his scar swelled a year ago, he did
not go to hospital because of financial reasons.
'In fact, the reason that it was swollen was because it was infected and eventually some tissue had
died, leaving him with the festering injury.
'When we took him into surgery, we discovered several maggots which were removed.
'We then needed to carry out a full operation to remove the maggots that had managed to go deeper.'
But he said the infestation had actually saved Mr Lanh's life by eating the infected tissue.
He said: 'This sort of fly infestation is extremely rare especially in the skull.
'I found eight references to it in medical literature worldwide and in every case the other patients died.
'In this man's case, however, the maggots had not gone on to eat any of his brain because of the
metal plate.
'They actually may have kept him alive by eating the dead tissue that might otherwise have made the
infection spread more quickly and killed him.'
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Lifesavers: Doctors say the maggots (above) ate diseased tissue that could have caused a fatal infection
The use of maggots to cleanse wounds is well known as they can remove necrotic tissue and also
disinfect the wound.
Mr Lanh suffered his initial head injury while working as a labourer in Malaysia.
After surgery to insert a titanium plate, the wound appeared to heal well, although he did suffer
headaches occasionally.
He said: 'It was mostly OK until a year ago when I noticed it was swollen and sore to touch.
'I didn't want to go to hospital again because I hoped it would heal on its own and even now three
years later I'm still paying the bill back for the last operation.
'I just couldn't afford another medical bill.'