New Yorkers Urged To Know Signs Of Rare Parasite

Cases of a rare flesh-eating parasite continue to skyrocket.

The number of confirmed cases of New World screwworm in the U.S. is up to 12.

12 Screwworm Cases Confirmed

FDA

Eleven days ago, Hudson Valley Post reported the first case of this screwworm in about 60 years was confirmed in a 3-week-old calf in South Texas.

Now, despite a 12-mile quarantine zone, 12 cases have been confirmed. Most of the cases are in Texas, but it's now also been confirmed in New Mexico.

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The screwworm can infect humans. Symptoms in humans can include seeing or feeling maggots in the skin, bleeding open sores, and foul odors from the infection site.

FDA

The screwworm is the larval stage (maggot) of a parasitic fly that lays eggs in open wounds or body openings. Once hatched, the maggot burrows into living flesh, causing painful, foul-smelling wounds and potentially death if untreated.

Symptoms of New World Screwworm Infestation

USDA

Symptoms include:

• Unexplained skin lesions (wounds or sores) that do not heal.
• Skin wounds or sores that worsen over time.
• Painful skin wounds or sores.
• Bleeding from open sores.
• Feeling larvae movement within a skin wound or sore, nose, mouth, or eyes.
• Seeing maggots around or in open sores.
• A foul-smelling odor from the site of the infestation.

The fly was eradicated in the U.S. in the 1960s but has since spread north through Central America and Mexico.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has declared a state of disaster, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture is working to fight the spread.

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