Hawaii
Woman, 30, infected by brain worms after trip to Hawaii — the symptoms that sent her to the hospital
A woman who had just returned from a dream vacation ended up with a nightmare condition.
The New England native, 30, had just spent three weeks traveling around Thailand, Japan and Hawaii, where she swam in the ocean and frequently dined on salads and sushi.
When she returned home, she noticed that she felt a little fatigued, which she initially simply blamed on jet lag.
But then her symptoms got worse, and she began experiencing a burning sensation in her feet that traveled up through her legs.
She was hospitalized, but her test results seemed to indicate that she was fine — until she had to go back to the emergency room because the burning sensation had migrated to her arms and was now accompanied by a severe headache.
She was ultimately treated at Massachusetts General Hospital by Dr. Carlos A. Portales Castillo and became a case study in The New England Journal of Medicine.
According to Castillo, the woman’s roommate rushed her to the hospital once more after “she awoke, she thought she needed to pack for vacation and was not redirectable,” continuing to be disoriented for several hours, People reported.
The prognosis? Angiostrongyliasis — a parasitic infection caused by Angiostrongylus species, most commonly Angiostrongylus cantonensis, which is also known as “rat lungworm.”
While rats are the primary hosts of this infection, snails and slugs can act as intermediate hosts, and humans can become infected by consuming them raw or undercooked.
Dr. Joseph Zunt, a neurologist who specializes in infectious diseases, came to this diagnosis after doctors performed a lumbar puncture, also known as a spinal fluid test, and discovered she had eosinophilic meningitis — inflammation of the membranes around the brain and spinal cord.
He also connected the dots after finding out more about her behavior in Hawaii, where the infection is a known issue.
Most of the cases in Hawaii have been on the Big Island, though it’s popped up in the other major islands as well. Though there haven’t been any documented cases yet in 2025, there were eight in 2024 — seven residents and one visitor.
Infection can occur from eating raw or undercooked infected snails or slugs, fruits or veggies that have been contaminated, or an land crabs, freshwater prawns, frogs that have themselves eaten an infected snail. This patient most likely became sick while eating food that was contaminated with snail or slug slime.
Symptoms of rat lungworm often start with nausea, vomiting, and stomach pain, starting hours or days after eating contaminated food, according to Hawaii’s Disease Outbreak Control Division.
Headache, fever, muscle pain, fatigue, insominia, and neurologic symptoms can develop, as can neck stiffness and pain, tingling or burning of the skin, double vision, bowel or bladder difficulties, and seizures.
Children may experience more fever, irritability, somnolence, lethargy, gastrointestinal symptoms, muscle twitching, convulsions, and extremity weakness. In addition, individuals may experience a few days to weeks of no symptoms followed by neurologic symptoms.
Because cases are often misdiagnosed or underreported, it’s difficult to determine precisely how frequently people contract this illness. However, Hawaii typically reports 10-12 cases per year, and it has occurred in other tropical regions, such as Florida and Texas.
There is no specific cure for this infection, so treatment usually focuses on pain management. In this patient’s case, she was treated with the anti-inflammatory steroid prednisone and sent home from the hospital after six days.
In January, a disturbing X-ray of a human body riddled with worms went viral after the patient contracted cysticercosis — which begins with eating undercooked pig but is passed through fecal matter.
Just another good reminder to always wash your hands!
Hawaii
Healthier Hawaii: How to protect your hearing; head and neck warning signs you shouldn’t ignore
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – You may have received new earbuds or headphones during the holidays. But there are a few things you keep in mind when it comes to protecting your hearing.
Dr. Ross Shockley, an otolaryngologist with Wilcox Medical Center and Kaua‘i Medical Clinic, offers the following tips for hearing, as well as head and neck health.
Head and neck cancers
Many people are not familiar with head or neck cancers. What causes it and when should someone see a doctor?
- Traditionally, head and neck cancers were mostly associated with longtime smokers and drinkers. Now, more cases are tied to human papillomavirus (HPV), even in nonsmokers and drinkers. HPV is the same virus that can lead to cervical cancer in women. It is common and can have no symptoms.
- If you have throat pain, pain when swallowing that doesn’t go away, or a mass in your neck that feels firm and isn’t moving, don’t wait. See your doctor.
- Head and neck cancers can be treated, no matter the cause, if caught early.
How to prevent hearing loss
More young adults, in their early 20s, are experiencing hearing loss. Can hearing loss be reversed?
- Hearing loss can’t be reversed. Once ringing in ears starts, that can be permanent.
- Wear appropriate hearing protection when using power tools or firing weapons.
- You can find ear protection that blocks out sound for about $15. Protection that covers the whole ear are better than earplugs.
How do you know if music or movies are too loud?
- Don’t turn anything up to the maximum.
- You want the volume to be at the lowest level where you can still hear and understand.
- If there is background noise, don’t crank up the volume all the way to fight it. Use noise-cancelling headphones or go somewhere quieter.
Dangers of cleaning your ears
You may feel the urge to clean your ears. Shockley says do less, or even nothing at all.
- Our ears clean themselves. As new skin grows, it takes wax with it out of your ear.
- When you clean your ears, you’re interrupting that natural cleaning process.
- You can also put yourself at risk for external ear infections – or make your ears itch more.
Copyright 2026 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.
Hawaii
Hawaii Grown: Few isle players in College Football Playoff final four | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Hawaii Island police are renewing their request for the public’s assistance in locating 82-year-old Jacquelyn Glenn of Kailua-Kona, who was reported missing by her family.
Police said she is considered endangered due to her age.
Glenn was last seen on Friday, Dec. 5, around 6:37 a.m., on the 75-200 block of Nani Kailua Dr. in Kailua-Kona.
She was wearing a peach-colored shirt, blue denim jeans, and black tennis shoes. She reportedly mentioned going to Hilo with friends, but did not say when she planned to return.
She is described as 5′6″, 125 Ibs, with curly grey hair and brown eyes.
Police ask anyone with information on the whereabouts of Jacquelyn Glenn to call the Hawaii Police Department’s non-emergency line at (808) 935-3311.
Copyright 2026 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.
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