Woman sneezes nearly 1-inch-long ‘worms’ — how she got the ‘biologically implausible’ infection
A woman in Greece experienced a rare and unusual medical case after being infected with sheep bot fly larvae, according to a recent medical report.
The 58-year-old was working outdoors near a field of grazing sheep during the dry September heat when she noticed a large number of flies around her face. About a week later, she began developing sinus pain, followed by several weeks of severe coughing with no other major symptoms.
On October 15, she sneezed out what appeared to be a larval insect. She then sought medical care, and an ear, nose and throat specialist discovered and removed additional organisms from her nasal sinuses. In total, 10 larvae and one pupa were extracted. With treatment, including nasal decongestants, she recovered fully, and no one else around her reported similar symptoms.
Laboratory DNA testing identified the organisms as sheep bot flies (Oestrus ovis), a species that typically infects sheep and goats, where the larvae develop inside nasal passages before eventually leaving the host to pupate in soil.
Human infection is rare. When it does occur, larvae are usually found in the eyes or nasal area and typically do not progress beyond early development stages. In this case, however, researchers noted that some larvae had reached a more advanced stage, including pupation, which is highly unusual in humans.
Doctors reported that the patient had a significantly deviated nasal septum, which may have altered airflow and sinus conditions in a way that allowed the larvae to remain and develop. Normally, human nasal environments are considered unsuitable for this kind of development due to immune defenses, temperature, and humidity conditions.
Researchers described the case as medically unusual and noted that while it raises questions about parasite behavior, more evidence is needed before drawing conclusions about any broader change in how the species interacts with humans.
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