Three people were rushed to hospital after being bitten by crocodiles in England last year, Government figures show.
One adult was even attacked by the dangerous reptile in a ‘residential institution’, often used in statistics to define a care home.
The bizarre incidents, normally seen in parts of Africa, Asia and Australia, were released by NHS Digital and formed part of a table of the weirdest hospital admissions.
The report also revealed how there were nearly 900 cases of penis ulcers between March 2016 and April this year and 500 injuries involving powered lawnmowers.
The figures prompted a mocking from Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt who suggested he needed to do more to tackle the spate of cases.
Responding to a tweet about the strange data from all admissions in England, Mr Hunt said: ‘Sounds like I need to commission a strategy paper on this one.’
The bizarre incidents, normally seen in parts of Africa, Asia and Australia, were part of a chain of strange statistics released by NHS Digital
Where was the data from?
The data, derived from Hospital Episodes Statistics, encompassed all admissions, appointments and attendances in England between April 2016 and March this year.
There were 98,625,166 diagnoses made across the country in total, the figures show, with many patients having to receive bad news on more than one occasion.
What other bizarre incidents were there?
In addition to the crocodile and alligator incidents, it also showed that 519 people injured themselves by using their powered lawnmowers.
Hospital staff diagnosed 21 people with paedophilia – sexual urges towards children, and 183 people with just a simple bout of sneezing.
It even prompted Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt to mockingly suggest that he needs to do more to tackle the spate of cases
While Dr Sarah Holmes, a governor at Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, jokingly drew up a public health campaign to prevent crocodile bites in the future
Mr Hunt’s sarcasm prompted a chain of replies from the medical community, including a humorous response from inspectors at the Care Quality Commission
Vibratory urticaria
The figures also showed an 82-year-old developed vibratory urticaria – the outbreak of hives caused by exposing the skin to some form of vibration.
Some 864 unfortunate men were diagnosed with penis ulcers, while 58 people were poisoned from picking berries and eating them.
It was also revealed that seven patients sought medical treatment because they had maggots in their eyes – known as ocular myiasis.
‘Victims of lightning’
Fourteen people were deemed ‘victims of lightning’, and two soldiers were admitted after going on an operation involving nuclear weapons.
Earthquakes in England caused two injuries, while avalanches and landslides were behind nine other admissions to hospital.
The official figures showed there to be five ‘victims of volcanic eruption’ – despite there being no active volcanoes in the country, suggesting they suffered abroad.
More than 400 cases of people being injured by coming into contact with plant thorns were recorded, alongside 34 accidents using high pressure jets.