Doctors have treated the first-ever case of rice food poisoning in the genital area.
A 38-year-old man sought help from urologists after experiencing redness, swelling, and crusting on his penis for a week.
Further investigation revealed that the disturbing symptoms had started shortly after he had experienced severe diarrhea and vomiting.
Doctors at the American University of Beirut Medical Center in Lebanon, where he was being treated, took a swab from the man’s penis to test for infection.
They found evidence of the presence of the bacteria bacillus cereus, which is usually found in rice that has been left at room temperature for too long and can cause nausea and stomach upset if you eat it.
He presented to the urology clinic in Lebanon after experiencing painful swelling and redness of his penis for a week, as well as gastrointestinal symptoms
Doctors concluded that the man’s unusual genital infection was caused by a bout of diarrhea and vomiting that occurred almost immediately after “violent sex” with his wife.
During an intimate act, the risk of bacteria entering the skin may increase due to changes in blood vessels.
It was said that the bacteria had come into direct contact with the patient’s groin.
The doctors noted that it was “unusual” to find bacillus cereus on the skin, let alone on the genitals.
This was the ‘first case in the literature’ of penile food poisoning.
The man, a father of two, was treated with a topical antibiotic called fusidic acid, which is normally used to treat eye infections.
The patient was also told to wash the area “well” and avoid sex or masturbation until it healed.
The type of bacteria that infected his penis, Bacillus cereus, is usually found in contaminated rice
One month after infection, the patient reported that he no longer had any burning sensation or discomfort in the genital area and that the infection had not returned.
Doctors explain that Bacillus cereus can make you feel sick as early as 30 minutes after eating.
According to the NHS, symptoms are relatively mild and usually last about 24 hours.
The patient had eaten a rice meal with his family the day before the symptoms started.
The study, published in the journal Annals of Medicine and Surgery, found that penile infections usually occur after an injury that leaves an open wound, and that the infection is most often caused by the bacteria group A streptococcus.
The study authors wrote: ‘In this case, it is likely that the diarrhea and vomiting that contaminated the penis after intercourse were the source of the skin infection.’
