3-Centimeter-Long Worm Pulled from Teen's Eye with Basil and Tweezers (VIDEO)

This is a story that's likely to give you nightmares. A 17-year-old from Pozuzo recently had a 3-centimter-long worm pulled from his eye after it had lived there for about a month. Probably the most disgusting thing about this, though, is that it was caught on video for your viewing pleasure.

The teen visited the Children's Hospital in Lima after suffering from a swollen left eye. After undergoing an MRI, the doctors realized that he had a botfly larva living in his eye.

Of course, the researchers had to take steps to remove the larva. They first lured the worm out using basil leaves, since botfly larva are attracted to the smell. Because it was so large, though, the worm only poked out its head. That's when they used tweezers to pull the worm the rest of the way out.

Botflies use 40 different species of mosquitos and other insects as a way to infect humans. The fly captures the vector, deposits her eggs into it, and then releases it. When the mosquito bites a human to feed, the eggs are dropped into the skin. In this case, an egg wound up in a boy's eye.

Fortunately for the boy, he isn't suffering any long-term effects from having a botfly larva in his eye.

Want to see the video for yourself? You can check it out here.

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