Brain-eating parasites: Has anyone dealt with this?

walter said:He’s definitely turning people into politicians! 😲 😲

😲
That would explain everything about Roy.

gottcha said:Great. Now we get to sit through all the excuses. "Oh, I was under the influence of a parasite." Real classy.🙂

🤣

Ugh—
if that turns out to be true, it’s easy enough to just kick that parasite out.
🙂

😬

It’s known as Toxoplasma gondii.

But honestly, it isn't anything out of the ordinary. There are plenty of different life forms capable of parasitizing the brain. 😉

http://www.biosci.ohio-state.edu/~pa...oxoplasma.html

Look, I can’t even post the link—the button is totally broken for me.

Anyway, look, Toxoplasma is definitely dangerous. It can cause blindness, hepatitis, and pneumonia—not to mention neurological issues—just like it says right there.

Thank God I ended up picking up some stray cats off the street again... honestly, I've lived with them my whole life, so that's probably why I'm acting this crazy. 😬

Look, that’s been common knowledge for ages 🙂 toxoplasmosis 🙂 so just stay away from cats 🙂

Zeljkoo said:We saw what the French were capable of back in 1941.
During the Algerian War...

🙂

🙄

shadowfalcon33 said:It’s called Toxoplasma gondii.

But honestly, nothing out of the ordinary there. Plenty of different life forms can parasitize a brain. 😉

😲 😲 😲
I knew it!

And they definitely mess with your emotions!
Man, what a waste that I didn't finish medical school. I would have loved to dive into this research—could've been a hell of a career.
😳

...just a few minutes...
😬

Frank Cooper3 said:Look, everyone’s known about 🙂 toxoplasmosis 🙂 for ages. Just stay away from cats. 🙂

Alright, fine.
😁

But... I don't get it. How does that parasite actually jump to humans?
Just by touching a cat? Or maybe through their saliva if they lick you?
😕

You inhale dust containing bacteria in its oocyst stage. You can catch it straight from a cat if you touch their feces and then accidentally put your hands in your mouth; that doesn't mean you're out there digging through their crap 😉—it could be as simple as cleaning a litter box after they've rolled in someone else's infected mess, getting it on their fur, and then picking it up while you pet them. There are other ways too, like eating raw meat, etc...

Anyway, here's a link for you. Do some actual reading. 😉
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasi...oplasmosis.htm

Frank Cooper3 said:You breathe in dust containing bacteria in an oocyst state. Or you get it straight from a cat if you touch its waste and then accidentally put your hand in your mouth. Look, I'm not suggesting you go digging through cat crap with your bare hands 😉 but you could be cleaning a litter box, get some contaminated filth on you, then pet the cat and end up ingesting it. There are other ways too, like eating raw meat, etc...

😲
I really should have kept my mouth shut.
😁

Frank Cooper3 said:Anyway, here's a link. Go read up on this. 😉
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasi...oplasmosis.htm

Extremely informative.
😳

What should I do if I think I may have toxoplasmosis?

If you suspect that you may have toxoplasmosis, talk to your healthcare provider. Your doctor might order various types of blood tests specifically for toxoplasmosis. These results help them figure out if you actually have a Toxoplasma infection and if it’s a recent, acute case.

I wonder if doctors here even run these kinds of tests, or if they aren't even aware of this parasite.
🙄

Even though it says the symptoms—swollen lymph nodes and a weakened immune system—usually just pass after a while.

All in all, nothing to lose sleep over.
😳

My sister was telling me about this old guy she met while on vacation who ended up giving her his entire family's medical history... I honestly think you and that old man would get along famously

🙂

Apparently, someone in his lineage has this brain condition... it acts almost like a tumor, driving people to act in really strange ways... things that can actually get dangerous
And the worst part is, because of it, his daughter can't even have children

Is that show about diseases on again tonight?

btw, if our doctors here in the States know about it, chances are yours do too... it’s not exactly some rare mystery if it’s making its way onto national TV
I remember watching that one episode about that mutated bacteria that eats through human flesh—they had to amputate his leg... that was easily the most bizarre thing I've ever seen

Don't go eating steak tartare

Crook said:Do American doctors even run these kinds of tests? Or maybe they don't even know this parasite exists.
🙄
The thing is, the symptoms—swollen lymph nodes, weakened immune system—they just seem to come and go.
Bottom line: nothing to worry about.
😳

Of course they know.😁 It’s standard stuff taught in med school; everyone sits through Microbiology. I'm not entirely sure how common these specific tests are at local clinics, but I'm pretty certain you can find them at private practices.

I’ve been reading about this too—apparently, they've noticed a huge number of people involved in car accidents have that same issue in their brains
It's a disaster.