Well I'll be jiggered!!
on The Cowans in Kampala (Uganda), 18/Aug/2010 06:13, 34 days ago
Alison recently turned her hand to some minor surgery on our balcony when our friend Sabrina, who was visiting Kampala, discovered that an unwanted guest had burrowed into her toe. She had picked up a jigger, which is a type of flea that lives on the ground and hops onto people's feet, making a home under the skin from where it ejects hundreds of eggs...nice!? Initially, Alison tried to duck out of the extraction on the grounds of no local anaesthetic, but after some training via Youtube videos of jiggers being extracted with safety pins and leaves, it was decided that the procedure could be safely carried out at home with a needle, some disinfectant and a piece of wood to bite down on! Ably assisted by Alan and Natalie, the operation took somewhat longer than expected as the blighter was well dug in. In fact, by the end of the operation there was a question mark over whether it was in fact a jigger and not part of Sabrina's toe!The patient seemed none the worse for her ordeal and hobbled off without too much discomfort, and has since reported a complete recovery - thank God!