Chinese Man Loses One Eye After Killing A Fly That Landed On His Face

A man in China was forced to have his left eyeball removed because of an infection caused by him killing an insect on his face. According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the man surnamed Wu, killed the fly that was buzzing around him after it landed on him. An hour later, his left eye became red, swollen and painful. He immediately sought medical advice, however, even after taking medication, his condition worsened and he eventually had to get his left eyeball removed. 

The man, who lives in Shenzhen in the southern province of Guangdong, China, was diagnosed with seasonal conjunctivitis, the outlet reported. After he started experiencing pain in his left eye, he took medication. However, the pain did not subside and he started having problems seeing.

Doctors told him that his symptoms were caused by an infection that medication could no longer halt as the eye and the areas around it had become severely ulcerated. The infection was threatening to spread to his brain, and so the doctors had to remove his entire left eyeball. 

The South China Morning Post reported that the small insect involved was a drain fly, whose larvae often live in water. These insects are commonly found in dark, damp places in homes, such as bathrooms, bathtubs, sinks and kitchens. Experts advise staying calm when an insect flies near your eyes and not swatting at it. Instead, gently shoo it away and then wash the touched area with clean water or a saline solution. 

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Mr Wu's case has attracted much attention on Chinese social media platform Weibo. One user wrote, "This is terrifying. I often see these small insects in my bathroom and will no longer kill them randomly."

"Always keeping the bathroom and kitchen clean is the best way to protect ourselves," commented another. 

Meanwhile, in a similar incident, in 2018, a 97-year-old woman in China experienced severe pain in her left cheek due to a fly landing on a wound, causing a secondary infection. Her family said the bathroom had not been cleaned for a long time, attracting many drain flies to the surfaces.