8-year-old girl in China vomits live worms for weeks, linked to contaminated pipes of her house

An eight-year-old girl in China who reportedly vomited live worms for almost a month was found to have been affected by moth fly larvae, as per reports by the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

The girl, from Yangzhou City in Jiangsu province, had been repeatedly throwing up worms around 1cm in length, with no similar symptoms seen in her family members. Her father reportedly told doctors that she would vomit a handful of worms each time. Despite visiting multiple hospitals, the cause remained unknown until she was examined by a specialist at the Children’s Hospital of Soochow University.

According to reports, Dr Zhang Bingbing advised the family to take the worms to the local Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Experts there identified the worms as larvae of drain flies, also known as moth flies, which are commonly found in damp areas such as kitchens and bathrooms.

A department head at the Yangzhou CDC, told SCMP that the larvae may have reportedly entered the girl’s system through splashes of water while brushing her teeth or flushing the toilet. He noted that the underground water source could have been contaminated with the larvae.