A 38-year-old Lebanon man got an unusual bacterial infection in his penis after eating rice and having “vigorous intercourse” with his wife.
The incident was detailed this month in the Annals of Medicine & Surgery.
As reported by The New York Post, a few hours after being intimate, the man suffered severe diarrhea and vomiting. Then he experienced penile swelling and redness for about a week before seeking medical help.
Doctors at the American University of Beirut Medical Center took a swab from his scabbed penis, and blamed Bacillus cereus, a bacterium found in soil, vegetation and contaminated food such as reheated rice and vegetables.
According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), around 63,400 cases of Bacillus cereus illness are reported in the US each year.
If rice is left out at room temperature, the bacillus cereus can produce toxins that cause diarrhea and vomiting. Reheating doesn’t destroy the toxins.
According to the study, this was the 'first case in literature' of a patient suffering food poisoning in the penis.
The father of two reported that he had eaten rice a day before he started to experience symptoms.
The doctors suspect that he contaminated his penis with his vomit and diarrhea after sex with his wife, which is “likely the source of the skin infection.”
The man was advised to avoid sex and masturbation and apply fusidic acid antibiotic ointment to his penis three times a day after washing and gently drying the area.
His condition appeared to have completely resolved four weeks after receiving his unique diagnosis.
