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Ghost pepper puts hole in man's esophagus

The ghost pepper is one of the world's hottest peppers, with a Scoville rating of more than a million. So it might follow that you shouldn't ingest it in more than tiny quantities. And yet, the Journal of Emergency Medicine reports on the unusual case of a man who tore a hole in his esophagus after eating an incredibly hot ghost pepper.

The 47-year-old American ate a burger topped with a "ghost pepper puree" as part of an eating contest. The man started vomiting, profusely. He threw up so much, in fact, that he caused a tear to form in his esophagus—a rare condition known as Boerhaave syndrome.

When his pain continued to get worse, the man called emergency responders. Eagle-eyed doctors were able to diagnose the tear, and the man's life was saved with emergency surgery.

Source: Newser
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