These Are Some of the MOST Bizarre Medical Cases Ever Seen
It sometimes seems like scientists already know of every disease that
can possibly plague humankind and every symptom these conditions can
produce, from rare genetic conditions that only a few people in the
world have to common diseases that most of us had at one point in time.
And then, a new strange and completely bizarre case like these is
recorded, urging medical researchers to completely rethink what they
know of the human body and the way it functions. Here are 10 incredible
medical cases we've heard of.
1. A Glowing Iris
1. A Glowing Iris
When a 44-year-old American man turned up
at an eye clinic in an attempt to set up with a new doctor after a
recent move, the ophthalmologist observed a strange and extremely rare
symptom - the man's eye seemed to emit a glow, with many subsequent
people even pointing out that the man's eye looks a lot like the ominous
Eye of Sauron from the Lord of the Rings.
Cultural references aside, though, the man faced a serious rare disorder
that caused the eye pigment in his eye to flake off as a result of
ocular pressure abnormalities and a clogged eye drainage. The rare
disease is called pigment dispersion syndrome, and it's very rare in
adults past the age of 30. Long story short, a combination of laser
therapy and eye pressure medication ultimately helped restore the eye
pigment in the man's eyes.
2. Blue Blood 
In a "surprising" turn of events, it turned
out that it isn't aristocracy that causes blue blood, but a rare
medical issue called methemoglobinemia, a blood condition when red blood
cells cannot release all the oxygen to the cells. The excess oxygen
turns the blood a dark blue color, and patients, like the 25-year-old
woman from Rhode Island who was taken to the emergency room with
complaints of shortness of breath, weakness, fatigue, and a bluish skin
hue.
Methemoglobinemia can be hereditary or a side effect of medication, and
in this case, it was likely the numbing cream she applied liberally to
treat a toothache that caused the condition. The condition was treated
with methylene blue, a medication that can typically reverse the
condition in a matter of hours.
3. Feather Duvet Lung
3. Feather Duvet Lung
A 43-year-old Scottish man was suffering
from a persistent lower respiratory infection for 3 months that didn't
respond to treatment. The man was experiencing difficulty breathing and
fatigue, especially when he was at home. A specialized blood test
revealed that the inflammation in his lungs was caused by irritation due
to exposure to duck or chicken feathers, which made doctors realize
that the man was suffering from a rare condition called feather duvet
lung.
When a 46 year-old man claimed he didn't drink any
alcohol despite having extremely high alcohol levels after turning to
the doctor with complaints about inexplicable brain fog and
aggressiveness, the doctors didn't believe him, as what he described
looked just like an episode of drunkenness. 
This condition occurs when a person
develops an allergic reaction to bedding, which causes chronic
inflammation. After switching to hypoallergenic bedding, the man
experienced a rapid improvement in symptoms.
4. Drunk without Alcohol
4. Drunk without Alcohol
When a 46 year-old man claimed he didn't drink any
alcohol despite having extremely high alcohol levels after turning to
the doctor with complaints about inexplicable brain fog and
aggressiveness, the doctors didn't believe him, as what he described
looked just like an episode of drunkenness.Eventually, it turned out that the man was
right, and his symptoms were the result of an extremely rare condition
called auto-brewery syndrome (ABS), which can occur when certain gut
microorganisms transform carbohydrates from food into alcohol,
essentially producing alcohol internally. In this man's case, a specific
kind of yeast in his gut was turning carbs into alcohol, and treatment
of antibiotics killed the booze producing bugs, and over time, he could
resume eating carb-rich foods without feeling drunk.
5. Fire in the chest
5. Fire in the chest
"Having a fire in the chest" is an
expression we typically use metaphorically, but in the case of one
patient undergoing open-heart surgery, doctors actually ended up having
to put out a literal fire in his chest as a result of a rare
complication.
The combination of supplementary oxygen and
an electrocautery device used to prevent bleeding sparked a fire on the
surgical gauze. Saltwater was promptly used to quickly extinguish the
fire, and luckily, the patient wasn't injured, but we can't imagine the
shock everyone in the operation room must have experienced upon
witnessing the situation.
6. Too much Wasabi caused heart damageWhen a 60-year-old woman in Israel was
attending a wedding, she confused avocado with wasabi, and ended up
eating a large quantity of the Japanese horseradish. Only a few minutes
later, she suddenly felt pressure in her chest, which was radiating into
her arms.
The following day, the woman was diagnosed
with broken-heart syndrome, a condition that usually occurs after
massive emotional or physical stress and manifests itself through the
enlargement and weakening of the left ventricle, which greatly increases
one's risk of heart events and stroke.
The condition is usually temporary, and the woman recovered in a month,
although she did have to take heart medications during this time.
7. A Blinding Diet
7. A Blinding Diet
If anyone is still looking for proof that
junk food is bad for you, here is a prime example. By the age of 17, a
British teen was diagnosed legally blind, all because of his poor eating
habits. A picky eater, the teen ate nothing but fries, chips, white
bread, sliced ham, sausages and other kinds of junk food for years, and
by the age of 14, he developed a vitamin B12 deficiency, which developed
into hearing and eyesight problems by the age of 15.
The symptoms developed because the lack of
the vitamin can result in nerve damage, with the ocular nerve being
affected quite often. The condition is permanent, but the teen managed
to stop any further ocular degeneration after he started taking
nutritional supplements.