Aussie couple blame a dodgy pad thai in Thailand for two years of hell

A couple from Perth in Western Australia are blaming a plate of Pad Thai has put them through two years of hell. (The link between the pad thai, though implicated by the couple, and their illness was never fully explained)

Stacey Barnes and Ryan Prigg from Perth, along with their two children, visited Thailand for a holiday in 2017. Once back in Perth they both began to feel unwell, drained of energy and struggling to even get out of bed.

“Every day was a struggle from the get go. I had no memory I couldn’t recall anything. I was in a constant state of fogginess,” according to Stacey.

Doctors tried to establish what was wrong with them, and following repeated visits, tests eventually revealed that they had contracted Dientamoeba Fragilis, a dangerous parasite, which they say was caught from the Pad Thai dish they had eaten at a food court in Thailand (location not revealed).

Dientamoeba fragilis is a species of single-celled excavates found in the gastrointestinal tract of some humans, pigs and gorillas. It causes gastrointestinal upset in some people, but not in others. It is an important cause of travellers diarrhoea, chronic diarrhoea, fatigue and, in children, failure to thrive.

Dientamoeba Fragilis can cause ongoing health issues such as diarrhoea, loss of appetite, nausea and in extreme cases, chronic fatigue. A 4 week course of antibiotics was the eventual cure after almost two years of doctors, poor health and false diagnosis.

Ryan, on a Channel 7 TV special, vowed never to return to Thailand, saying the experience had put them through the worst two years of their lives.

“I won’t go back, yeah life changing, I won’t go back, ever”.

Stacey also revealed how their ill health meant they were mostly incapacitated and unable to work.

“Losing our online business, my passion, really was hard, mentally physically, emotionally and financially! It’s made the last year and a half of my life, one of the hardest times of my life.”

SOURCE: PerthNow