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Two metre tapeworm removed alive after little girl eats sushi

A tapeworm measuring more than two and a half metres has reportedly been found living inside a young child in Taipei who enjoys sashimi.

Online reports claim the eight-year-old had experienced symptoms after eating the dish consisting of raw fish at a restaurant.

It is believed the young child had the type of tapeworm, named diphyllobothrium latum, living inside her for more than a month.

A tapeworm was found inside an eight-year-old in Taipei. Source: Apple Daily
A tapeworm was found inside an eight-year-old in Taipei. Source: Apple Daily

A doctor from Taipei Tri-Service General Hospital told media oulets that the tapeworm was still alive when it was extracted.

According to a translated Apple Daily report the girl was treated with an antiparasitic drug "praziquantel" and is now recovering.

Generic image of sashimi being prepared. Source: AAP Image/Joel Carrett
Generic image of sashimi being prepared. Source: AAP Image/Joel Carrett

Paediatrician Wang Zhijian told the publication that this type of tapeworm, also known as fish or broad tapeworm, is the largest human tapeworm.

The discovery has prompted a warning from medical experts not to eat raw food.