The Great Smoky Mountain Journal
Source: Fox News
Posted: Tuesday, January 01, 2019 02:25 PM
Canadian Couple Contracts Parasites After Walking Barefooted On Sand In Dominican Republic
WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES BELOW
Katie Stephens, 22, of Ontario, told CTV News that while staying at the IFA Villas Bavaro Resort in Punta Cana, she and her boyfriend, 25-year-old Eddie Zytner, “found that we were scratching our feet quite a bit.”
She told the news station the two had heard about sand fleas and “kind of assumed it was that at first.”
After returning home on Jan. 18, Zytner
noticed his feet had become very swollen and small bumps had developed
on his toes.
Stephens wrote on Facebook that the couple “simply thought it was just
bug bites and it became worse as each day passed.”
Two doctors were stumped by what was causing the swelling, but Zytner
said a third doctor recognized the condition, as he had recently seen a
similar case from a tourist who traveled to Thailand.
MAN CLAIMS HE CONTRACTED EYE-EATING PARASITE FROM AMUSEMENT PARK WATER
RIDE
The couple, according to Stephens’ Facebook post, contracted larva
migrans, known in layman’s terms as hookworms. She said she likely came
into contact with the parasites while walking on the sandy beaches of
their resort in Punta Cana.
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A doctor prescribed the two ivermectin — a medicine used to kill worms
developing in the body.
However, Stephens said Canada’s national public health department,
Health Canada, denied their request for the medication because it’s not
licensed in Canada — so her mother had to drive to Detroit, Michigan, to
get the medicine.
Stephens added that she shared their story on Facebook to warn people
who travel to tropical areas, and Zytner said he wanted doctors to
become more aware of the condition.
“We want to make it known to more doctors what it is, what to look for
and stuff because it took us a few trips to the hospital to find out
what it was,” Zytner told CTV News.
Zytner said that his feet are progressively getting better each day, and
the couple’s next step is to see a specialist to determine what
treatment they need for the skin damage on their feet.
The resort could not be reached for comment.
