ung woman this was not likely to be a vision-threatening infection.
"I stayed in contact with her, and we were able to tell her this was very localized, that it was not systemic," the physician said. "She was worried they would crawl into her brain."
In the meantime, a Washington state pathology lab, where some worms were first sent for identification, was unable to identify them. That lab sent two worms to CDC's parasitic diseases lab in Atlanta. As the reference laboratory for rare and unusual parasites, it is the "final stop for anything difficult," CDC's Bradbury said. The lab receives an average of 6,670 specimens a year, virtually all from within the United States.
The CDC confirmed the worms were part of a group of eye worms known as Thelazia, but the scientists did not know which species. They suspected it was the same species that had caused previous infections in humans. For patients, the treatment for any Thelazia infection was the same: removal of the worms.
It was only when Bradbury was preparing to write up the case months later that he and colleagues noticed some of the worms' features, such as the position of the genitalia and the shape of the mouth, looked unusual. Scientific literature was sparse. Bradbury eventually found the 1928 German paper that had pictures of the worm species in question. A CDC colleague and native German speaker helped confirm the text descriptions. Now the case study took on greater significance because this worm had never been found to infect humans.
Parasitic infections often are neglected in the United States, experts said. Beckley's case, they said, is a reminder that whenever there is the intersection of humans, animals and the environment, "there's always that chance of things moving across," Bonura said.
Beckley, now 28, is a sophomore at Southern Oregon University studying psychology. The experience has made her more meticulous about washing her hands. Also, whenever she is sees a lot of flies, "a little part of me says I need to get to the bathroom," to peek at her eyes.
She hopes her ordeal will help others who might find themselves in a similar situation. When she found the first worm, she remembers searching the Internet and finding no information. Now, at least, there will be articles about her if someone types in "worm in eye," Beckley said.
"If this does happen to anyone else, I want them to know this girl went through it, and she's fine," she said. "And not to freak out."