# Ants Eat Away Woman's Eye... (TMI) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 16, 2005, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236 "2005-11-16T00:03:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/1 "2005-11-16T00:03:44Z")
[…in a hospital, of all places!](http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyid=2005-11-15T152623Z_01_FLE555575_RTRUKOC_0_US-INDIA-ANTS.xml) Here’s the part that really got me. > [@](#): > > “It’s not uncommon for ants to attack diabetic patients. We have set up a committee to investigate the unfortunate incident,” hospital superintendent A. Adhikary said. That just ain’t right. ---
**Author:** ![Feydeau](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df788c/32.png) [@Feydeau](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Feydeau)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/2 "2005-11-16T00:40:13Z")
> [@the linked article](#): > > Authorities of the Sambhunath Hospital in Kolkata said they were probing the incident. I am _so_ going to hell for laughing at that sentence. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/3 "2005-11-16T00:55:05Z")
> [@](#): > > On Monday, the patient’s family saw a gaping hole with swarming ants in it when they lifted the bandage on her left eye. I am so going to have nightmares about that. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/4 "2005-11-16T01:09:46Z")
In India. Man, my mother country is backwards sometimes. Eyugh! ---
**Author:** ![anu-la1979](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/5 "2005-11-16T01:16:12Z")
It has nothing to do with it being “India” necessarily. My sister is a physician and my ex-fiance’s brother was an ER doctor and you have no idea about the stuff they’ve seen in the US, and really rich parts of the US at that. The ER doc told me how many obese people he’s seen with maggots nesting in rotting flesh of a _live_ human being. Actually, he told me he prefers to see it because they’re eating away the rot or something. My sister has also confirmed also the critters eating away live person’s flesh story. ---
**Author:** ![anu-la1979](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/6 "2005-11-16T01:18:52Z")
oh and they both work at upscale teaching hospitals, incidentally…not some fly-by-night operation or anything. I don’t remember who told me the story but I had one of my many physician friends once tell me about how the nurses found that a really obese patient had spilled a tuna sandwich on himself (as in inside of his folds) and it didn’t get caught for a week until the odour became unbearable. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/7 "2005-11-16T01:22:54Z")
> [@anu-la1979](#): > > It has nothing to do with it being “India” necessarily. . I’m not saying other countries don’t have similar things but oh yes it’s India. I love India but no need to defend something about a coutnry when it’s not worth defending. This is the sentence that really got me: > [@](#): > > The patient recovering from a post-surgery infection shrieked for help as the ants attacked her on Sunday night, but nurses told her it was normal to feel pain from the infection. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/8 "2005-11-16T01:26:03Z")
Anyone read [_The Wasp Factory_? ---
**Author:** ![anu-la1979](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/9 "2005-11-16T01:29:42Z")
> [@](#): > > I’m not saying other countries don’t have similar things but oh yes it’s India. I love India but no need to defend something about a coutnry when it’s not worth defending Nor do I feel the need to constantly put down or exclaim over a country’s backwardsness when horrific hospital snafus and inconsiderate providers exist the world over. This story is disgusting and all, I’m in agreement with that but what in particular about India or Indian culture creates unsympathetic providers and disgusting hospitals? There’s plenty of that in first world countries as well. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/10 "2005-11-16T01:34:24Z")
> [@anu-la1979](#): > > The ER doc told me how many obese people he’s seen with maggots nesting in rotting flesh of a _live_ human being. Actually, he told me he prefers to see it because they’re eating away the rot or something. My sister has also confirmed also the critters eating away live person’s flesh story. Maggots will (generally) only eat the necrotic flesh. This was sometimes used by WWI (and probably older) medics to prevent gas gangrene–you’d throw a handful of maggots under a loose bandage so the patient would survive waiting hours or days for surgery. One serious problem with morbid obesity or insensate patients is that they can develop infections from bed sores, self-chafing, fungal growth, et cetera that leave them open for infection by anerobic bacteria that can result in necrosis. It’s kind of gross to have little wiggly maggots eating away at dead flesh, but I suspect watching your limbs turn black and skin literally fall off of them while gagging at the stench like a thousand latrines would be worse. For all the talk of being “at the top of the food chain”, we are, ultimately, dinner for simple bacteria. How the mighty fall… 😉 Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/11 "2005-11-16T01:36:19Z")
> [@Tapioca Dextrin](#): > > Anyone read [_The Wasp Factory_? You sicko. You had to bring Iain Banks into this, didn’t you? 😛 Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/12 "2005-11-16T04:39:29Z")
> [@Stranger On A Train](#): > > Maggots will (generally) only eat the necrotic flesh. This was sometimes used by WWI (and probably older) medics to prevent gas gangrene–you’d throw a handful of maggots under a loose bandage so the patient would survive waiting hours or days for surgery. One serious problem with morbid obesity or insensate patients is that they can develop infections from bed sores, self-chafing, fungal growth, et cetera that leave them open for infection by anerobic bacteria that can result in necrosis. It’s kind of gross to have little wiggly maggots eating away at dead flesh, but I suspect watching your limbs turn black and skin literally fall off of them while gagging at the stench like a thousand latrines would be worse. > > For all the talk of being “at the top of the food chain”, we are, ultimately, dinner for simple bacteria. How the mighty fall… 😉 > > Stranger Maggot therapy is making a comeback along with leaches. This is also taught at military survival schools. I was taught about it in an army school 18 years ago. One nitpick, you don’t just throw maggots on a wound. You have to grow your own. ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/13 "2005-11-16T04:43:39Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > In India. Man, my mother country is backwards sometimes. Eyugh! That’s nothing! A friend of mine used a public toilet in New Delhi once. They had to amputate his leg. [/obligatory movie reference] ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/14 "2005-11-16T06:08:27Z")
_runs shrieking in horror_ Oh, god, that’s literally my two most common nightmares combined: being attacked by swarms of ants, and something terrible and painful happening to my eyes. Why did I open this thread? Why did I open this thread? Why, dear god, did I open this thread?! ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/15 "2005-11-16T14:20:20Z")
_“But I thought you said this wouldn’t be any picnic…”_ _steps into handbasket_ ---
**Author:** ![Ponder\_Stibbons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponder_stibbons/32/343_2.png) [@Ponder\_Stibbons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponder_Stibbons)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/16 "2005-11-16T14:23:16Z")
Ew! Ew! Ew! Ew! Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!! Great googly moogly, **Lord Ashtar** , couldn’t you give us a somewhat vaguer title and a TMI warning? I _really_ didn’t want to know this. Eww!! ---
**Author:** ![Tupug\_Anachi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@Tupug\_Anachi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tupug_Anachi)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/17 "2005-11-16T14:33:01Z")
[evil mom] I’m considering sending the link to my daughter who gets oogied out by ants. [/evil mom] 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/18 "2005-11-16T15:10:02Z")
> [@Stranger On A Train](#): > > For all the talk of being “at the top of the food chain”, we are, ultimately, dinner for simple bacteria. How the mighty fall… 😉 _Your worm is your only emperor for diet: we fat all creatures else to fat us, and we fat ourselves for maggots: your fat king and your lean beggar is but variable service; two dishes, but to one table: that’s the end._ ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/19 "2005-11-16T15:31:24Z")
I didn’t want to open this thread, but it keeps popping up. Then someone posted about it on my LJ friends list, too. There is no escaping it, so I read it. Inside I am screaming… a lot … there is a lot of screaming in my brain right now. I can’t help but wonder, when they patient screamed and the nurses said that the pain is normal did the patient just say “oh, well, that’s okay then.” and just go to sleep while the ants continued with their business? I’m going to have nightmares. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2005, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236/20 "2005-11-16T15:34:44Z")
> [@Stranger On A Train](#): > > Maggots will (generally) only eat the necrotic flesh. This was sometimes used by WWI (and probably older) medics to prevent gas gangrene–you’d throw a handful of maggots under a loose bandage so the patient would survive waiting hours or days for surgery. One serious problem with morbid obesity or insensate patients is that they can develop infections from bed sores, self-chafing, fungal growth, et cetera that leave them open for infection by anerobic bacteria that can result in necrosis. It’s kind of gross to have little wiggly maggots eating away at dead flesh, but I suspect watching your limbs turn black and skin literally fall off of them while gagging at the stench like a thousand latrines would be worse. > > For all the talk of being “at the top of the food chain”, we are, ultimately, dinner for simple bacteria. How the mighty fall… 😉 > > Stranger Maggot medicine is making a comeback. It’s used more and more in the U.S. Along with leeches. I approve, but please don’t do this to me without putting me in a coma for a couple of weeks. The knowledge that it was actually happening to me just might kill me. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ants-eat-away-womans-eye-tmi/331236.md?page=2)