Flesh-eating screwworm case detected in person in U.S. for first time in years

A case of the flesh-eating New World screwworm parasite was detected in a person in Maryland who returned to the U.S. after traveling to El Salvador, the Department of Health and Human Services said Sunday evening.Why it matters: "This is the first human case of travel-associated New World screwworm myiasis (parasitic infestation of fly larvae) from an outbreak-affected country identified in the United States," said HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon in an emailed statement that noted the risk to public health in the U.S. from this case "is very low." Screenshot: U.S. Department of Agriculture/XThe U.S. Department of Agriculture noted in a May statement announcing the suspension of animal imports at the southern border that these maggots "burrow into the flesh of a living animal, they cause serious, often deadly damage to the animal" that can, "in rare cases," include people.Context: "Myiasis is a parasitic infestation of fly larvae (maggots) in human tissue," per an online CDC post. "New World screwworm (NWS) is a species of parasitic flies that can cause myiasis and feed on live tissue."It primarily affects livestock, but it can also infest people."Driving the news: NWS is "typically found in South America and the Caribbean," according to the CDC.However, in recent months the Trump administration has stepped up efforts to prevent it from reaching the U.S. due to cases in cattle and ranchers in Mexico.Despite efforts that included a project to breed and sterilize billions of flies for airdrop over Mexico and southern Texas health officials, Nixon said the CDC, "in coordination with the Maryland Department of Health, investigated a confirmed case of travel-associated New World screwworm in a patient who returned from travel to El Salvador."The CDC confirmed the case "through telediagnosis (i.e., expert review of submitted larvae images)" on Aug. 4, according to Nixon.Reuters first reported on the U.S. case, though it said the traveler had returned from Guatemala.Flashback: U.S. Department of Agriculture officials used "a biological control technique (sterilized insects) to eradicate NWS fly populations" in the U.S. in 1966 and "eliminated a small outbreak from the Florida Keys in 2017," per a USDA online post.Go deeper: U.S. to breed billions of flies in fight against flesh-eating maggots

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