sorry i didnt write last week mom. it was really hectic. my comp is having all kinds of problems. and we were in the hospital for a surgery. my knee has been bugging me and i didnt want to tell you but i think with the surgery you should know......jk jk jk brincadeira. mas we really were there for a surgery but nothing big. my comp had 5 bicho de pé. or like little i dunno worms slash leeches. ha idk but we were in the house for 2 days because he couldnt walk on it. and today was hectic too. he went back to take out the last one and then to the dentist so i only have like 15 minutes to email before 6 and we have to work! but i love you and know that im doing great! ill try to send a better email but i wanted to let you know and then read yours to me.
That little stinker! His father and I both about had a heart attack while reading this! Anyway, I googled bicho de pé and here is what I found...
Here is what Wikipedia says about it...
The chigoe flea or jigger (Tunga penetrans) is a parasitic arthropod found in tropical climates, especially South and Central America and the West Indies, not to be confused with the larval form of Trombiculidae (called chiggers) found in more temperate climates. In Brazil, the parasite is referred to as bicho de pé. At 1 mm long, the chigoe flea is the smallest known flea. Breeding female chigoes burrow into exposed skin on the feet of mammals and remain there for two weeks while developing eggs, sometimes causing intense irritation. After this point, the skin lesion looks like a 5 to 10 mm blister with a central black dot, which are the flea's exposed hind legs, respiratory spiracles and reproductive organs.
If the flea is left within the skin, infection and/or other dangerous complications can occur, although they are relatively rare.
The parasitic flea lives in soil and sand, and feeds intermittently on warm-blooded hosts such as humans, cattle, sheep, dogs, mice, and other animals. In order to reproduce, the female flea burrows head-first into the hosts' skin, often leaving the caudal tip of its abdomen visible through an orifice in a skin lesion. This orifice allows the chigoe flea to breathe and defecate while feeding on blood vessels in the cutaneous and subcutaneous dermal layer. In the next two weeks, its abdomen swells with up to several dozen eggs which it releases through the caudal orifice to fall to the ground when ready to hatch. The flea then dies and is sloughed off with the host's skin. Within the next three to four days, the eggs hatch and mature into adult fleas within three to four weeks.
Infections are almost always on the foot of the host. During the first day or two of infection the host may feel an itching or irritation which then passes as the area around the flea calluses and becomes insensitive. As the flea's abdomen swells with eggs later in the cycle, the pressure from the swelling may press neighbouring nerves or blood vessels. Depending on the exact site, this can cause sensations ranging from mild irritation to serious discomfort.
I sure hope Dallin wears his shoes! AND, flip flops in the shower!
No comments:
Post a Comment