Doctors have treated the first ever case of rice-related food poisoning affecting the genital region.
A 38-year-old man sought help from urologists after suffering redness, swelling and scabbing on his penis, which had persisted for the best part of a week.
Further investigations revealed that the troubling symptoms had begun soon after he’d suffered a bout of severe diarrhea and vomiting.
The doctors, at the American University of Beirut Medical Center in Lebanon, where he was treated, took a swab of the man’s penis to test for infection.
They found evidence of the bacteria bacillus cereus, which is usually found in rice that’s been left out at room temperature for too long and can cause sickness and stomach upsets if eaten.
The doctors concluded that the man’s unusual genital infection had been caused by an episode of diarrhea and vomiting that occured almost immediately after ‘vigorous sex’ with his wife.
The intimate act can increase the risk of bacteria permeating the skin due to the change in blood vessels.
The bacteria was said to have made direct contact with the patient’s groin.
The doctors remarked that it was ‘unusual’ to see bacillus cereus in the skin, let alone the genitals.
This was the ‘first case in literature’ of the food poisoning in the penis.
The man, a father-of-two, was treated using a topical antibiotic called fucidic acid, usually used to treat eye infections.
The patient was also told wash the area ‘properly’ and avoid sex and masturbation until it healed.
One month after the infection the patient said he had no burning, or discomfort in the genital area and the infection did not come back.
The doctors explain bacillus cereus can cause you to be sick just 30 minutes after eating.
Symptoms are relatively mild and usually last about 24 hours, according to the NHS.
The patient had eaten a meal containing rice with his family just a day before his symptoms started.
The study, published in the journal Annals of Medicine and Surgery, noted that penile infections usually occur after an injury that creates an open wound, and typically involve the bacteria group A streptococcus.
Study authors wrote: ‘In this current case, it is plausible that the diarrhea and vomitus which contaminated the penis post intercourse is likely the source of the skin infection.’
Story by: Richard Nana Appiah Kubi/Ahotoronline.com
