FRI-03 CANDIRU: THE ‘URETHRAL INVADER’ FISH - MYTHS AND FACTS

Abstract

You have accessJournal of UrologyHistory of Urology Forum I1 Apr 2015FRI-03 CANDIRU: THE ‘URETHRAL INVADER’ FISH - MYTHS AND FACTS Marios Hadjipavlou, June Tay, and Yiannis Philippou Marios HadjipavlouMarios Hadjipavlou More articles by this author , June TayJune Tay More articles by this author , and Yiannis PhilippouYiannis Philippou More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.juro.2015.02.481AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES The candiru (Vandellia cirrhosa), also known as ‘toothpick fish’, is a parasitic freshwater catfish. It feeds on blood and flesh by using its spines on its gills to wedge itself into the gills of larger fish where it lives and feeds. Several reports since the 19th century have described invasion and parasitisation of small candiru species in the human urethra. We review some of the key reports and evaluate their validity and plausibility. METHODS We performed a literature search on preliminary and recent reports on topics related to candiru and invasion to the human urethra on Pubmed, internet search engines and the archives from the Royal Society of Medicine in London. RESULTS In 1829 German biologist and explorer Carl Friedrick Philipp von Martius travelled to Brasil and was told by natives about the candiru fish and their invasion to the human urethras. The fear was such that local men used protective coverings and even tied ligatures around their penises to prevent candirus invading when going into rivers. In his report, Martius hypothesised that the odour of urine attracted candirus, as primary prey of the fish emit urea from their gills, however recent research showed that the fish hunt by sight and are not attracted to human urine. During an expedition in the Araguaia region of Brazil in 1855, French naturalist Francis de Laporte de Castelnau was told by local fishermen that candirus “spring out of the water and penetrate into the urethra by ascending the length of the liquid column”. These claims, which defy the laws of physics, had spread to the local community and drew worldwide attention. By 1930, many more reports and witnesses described candirus entering and lodging into the vagina, but not the male urethra. The most recent case of a candiru invading the urethra was published in 1997. The patient reported urethral bleeding, difficulty passing urine and fever three days after suffering an attack by a small fish while urinating into a river. Cystoscopy showed the fish lodged in the anterior urethra and removed endoscopically. The procedure was filmed and specimens were photographed. The size of the extracted fish (133mm length), the history given by the patient and the incentive of the candiru to invade the patient's urethra contributed to the doubts for the veracity of the report. CONCLUSIONS For almost 200 years, the candiru fish and its ability to invade the urethra gained the status of an urban legend among Amazonian communities. The validity of the reports have remained a matter of debate and controversy but have certainly drawn international attention. © 2015 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 193Issue 4SApril 2015Page: e582-e583 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2015 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.MetricsAuthor Information Marios Hadjipavlou More articles by this author June Tay More articles by this author Yiannis Philippou More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...