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The 16 Strangest Medical Cases of 2016
Ghost pepper leads to torn esophagus
Ghost peppers are among the hottest chili peppers in the world, coming in at more than 1 million Scoville units, which experts use to measure the "heat" of peppers. (For comparison, jalapeños measure about 5,000 Scoville units.)
A 47-year-old man in California felt the full fiery force of the ghost pepper after eating a hamburger topped with a ghost pepper puree, according to a case report published online in September in The Journal of Emergency Medicine.
After eating the pepper, the man started vomiting and couldn't stop. His vomiting was so violent that it tore a hole in his esophagus — a condition that, if left untreated, is almost always fatal.
The man spent 23 days in the hospital, and was later sent home with a feeding tube, along with little desire to try another ghost pepper in the future.
Don't huff dust spray
A 28-year-old man developed a rare type of bone disease, called skeletal fluorosis, due to his habit of huffing computer cleaner. The disease causes a person's bones to become too dense, which can lead to deformation.
Skeletal fluorosis is prevalent in parts of the world where fluoride levels in drinking water are too high. However, the disease is rare in North America and Europe, so the doctors who treated the man had trouble figuring out what caused the man's disease.
They eventually figured out that the man had a habit of inhaling computer dust spray to get high. The spray contains a chemical called difluoroethane, which is made up of the elements carbon, hydrogen and fluorine. In the body, the breakdown of the compound may produce fluoride.
The man was able to quit his habit of inhaling the dust spray, and he underwent hip-replacement surgery to help with some of the damage to his hip joints, according to a report of the man's case, published in July in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.
Ghost pepper leads to torn esophagus
Ghost peppers are among the hottest chili peppers in the world, coming in at more than 1 million Scoville units, which experts use to measure the "heat" of peppers. (For comparison, jalapeños measure about 5,000 Scoville units.)
A 47-year-old man in California felt the full fiery force of the ghost pepper after eating a hamburger topped with a ghost pepper puree, according to a case report published online in September in The Journal of Emergency Medicine.
After eating the pepper, the man started vomiting and couldn't stop. His vomiting was so violent that it tore a hole in his esophagus — a condition that, if left untreated, is almost always fatal.
The man spent 23 days in the hospital, and was later sent home with a feeding tube, along with little desire to try another ghost pepper in the future.
Don't huff dust spray
A 28-year-old man developed a rare type of bone disease, called skeletal fluorosis, due to his habit of huffing computer cleaner. The disease causes a person's bones to become too dense, which can lead to deformation.
Skeletal fluorosis is prevalent in parts of the world where fluoride levels in drinking water are too high. However, the disease is rare in North America and Europe, so the doctors who treated the man had trouble figuring out what caused the man's disease.
They eventually figured out that the man had a habit of inhaling computer dust spray to get high. The spray contains a chemical called difluoroethane, which is made up of the elements carbon, hydrogen and fluorine. In the body, the breakdown of the compound may produce fluoride.
The man was able to quit his habit of inhaling the dust spray, and he underwent hip-replacement surgery to help with some of the damage to his hip joints, according to a report of the man's case, published in July in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.
