About 80% of the planet's inhabitants are infected with various helminths.It often takes a long time and unsuccessfully to cure a disease whose real cause is parasites.Worms that can live in humans violate the integrity of the vascular walls, block the intestinal lumen and damage internal organs.They produce toxic substances that enter the blood.
What kind of worms do humans have?
Helminths colonize the intestine or parasitize, living in any other organ.There are different varieties, the most common are nematodes.Their body has an elongated shape, with a round section, narrowing at the ends.More often than others, the infection occurs:
- roundworms, trichinae, which settle in the small intestine and other organs;
- whipworms that live in the large intestine and feed on blood and mucus;
- pinworms that accumulate in the cecum and colon.
Pinworms are especially often found in children when doing a stool test for enterobiasis.
In addition to those listed, there are more than a hundred less common parasites that populate different parts of the intestine.For example, in humans such worms as hookworm and roundworm are found in the thin segment;the thick section is often clogged with whipworms.People become hosts to adult tapeworms, which have a long, flat body.Large bovine and porcine tapeworms, tapeworms and echinococci inhabit the intestine.
Trematode worms have suckers on their body ranging from a few millimeters in length (Siberian fluke) to 7 cm (Fasciola).The parasites are transmitted to humans following the consumption of raw fish and unboiled water.Sometimes infection with worms occurs through the skin while swimming in lakes and rivers (schistosome).Once settled, they can feel good in various human organs for several years.
Methods of infection
The routes through which different types of worms enter are varied.The main method of infection with parasites is fecal-oral.It is associated with the penetration of helminths along with food and water.People simply ingest invisible organisms when they forget to wash their hands before eating.Worms in feces are rarely visible to the naked eye.But the flies that hover over the excrement always carry their eggs.If an insect lands on a piece of food, the chances of infection increase significantly.
Worms appear in humans after working with soil or sand without gloves.In the latter case, small children, for whom the sandbox is a favorite place to play, are more likely to suffer from parasites.Helminths reach the surface of the soil together with the feces of animals: cats, dogs, livestock and are transported by flies.They enter the human body through unwashed hands, microtraumas on the skin and insufficiently processed vegetables.Even inhaling road dust, saturated with very tenacious larvae, can become infected.
Another factor contributing to the appearance of worms is the use of poor-quality water.It is highly undesirable to ingest liquids while swimming in the sea, river or lake.Contains a huge number of parasites from the feces of fish, waterfowl and pets.If a person consumes raw fish or meat, there is a risk that an infection will occur and parasites - bovine tapeworm, porcine tapeworm, tapeworm - will settle in the body.In medical reference books there are photos of worms, the length of which reaches several meters.
Symptoms and signs of helminth infestation
Having become hosts of parasites, people begin to lose weight rapidly, feel exhausted and appear pale.Indicate the presence of worms:
- pain all over the body;
- painful sensations in the joints;
- general weakness;
- loss of appetite;
- diarrhea or constipation;
- attacks of nausea.
But to make sure that helminths are present in the body, it is necessary to undergo an examination.It will help identify worms in the stool or special antibodies in the blood.
Symptoms increase in the absence of timely treatment.Depending on which worms predominate in the body and where they accumulate, the signs of the disease will be different.Bile stagnation occurs when the ducts become blocked by parasites.A person feels heaviness and pain in the right hypochondrium, bitterness in the mouth.They periodically suffer from attacks of nausea and constipation.
Many worms secrete substances that irritate the intestinal walls: diarrhea appears, in which the feces are watery and foamy.In addition to this, the patient feels increased gas formation, strong rumbling in the abdomen and pain in the navel area.
Once in the human body, worms are able to migrate.Their progress is accompanied by severe pain.Most often, a person with helminthiasis thinks that he has an exacerbation of arthritis.In fact, the unpleasant sensations caused by worms are the body's response to tissue injury.
A person experiences a state of apathy, has a deterioration in the ability to concentrate and memory problems.This happens if parasites are present in the body for a long time.A previously unusual allergy or intolerance on the part of the body to certain foods occurs.Worms become the culprits of skin problems.The most common:
- acne, pimples all over the body;
- urticaria, atopic dermatitis, eczema;
- wrinkle formation too early;
- hair loss, bald patches.
More frequent runny nose, bronchitis, asthma and pneumonia can be caused by worms migrating through the bloodstream.Sometimes parasites settle in the lungs, lay eggs there, which mature and turn into full-fledged individuals.In radiographs and scans obtained after tomography, worms appear as a focal darkening of a round or oval shape.
The entry of toxic waste products of helminths into the blood causes people to complain of:
- constant anxiety, irritability;
- depression;
- insomnia.
Both obesity and underweight are common symptoms of worms.Digestive problems and intoxications lead to poor appetite.A person loses body weight.The long-term presence of parasites causes a decrease in blood glucose levels and a constant feeling of hunger.At the cellular level there is a lack of nutrients, which is compensated by the accumulation of adipose tissue.
Drug therapy
It is not recommended to treat helminthiasis without first consulting a specialist for several reasons.The first is that even after analyzing feces several times, it is not always possible to identify parasites.To accurately determine what type of worms have settled in a person, you will have to carry out a more detailed examination, including:
- general blood test with formula for leukemia;
- biochemical blood test (liver tests);
- analysis of feces and rectal mucus.
Sometimes, examining bile, sputum, and small sections of skin is necessary to identify worms that have colonized the body.
Treating worms in an adult or child on your own is a dubious idea.Pharmacological drugs are quite toxic.At the same time, many of them have a direct effect against a specific species without affecting others.
If test results reveal worms in a person's feces or the presence of parasites is confirmed by other diagnostic procedures, the infectious disease specialist selects the most effective drug.The doctor who prescribes the pills will have to indicate exactly how many times the medicine must be taken and its dose, based on the patient's weight.Treatment of worms is carried out:
- Albendazole;
- Parazyquanteloma;
- Medamine;
- mebendazole;
- Pirantel.
The procedure for eliminating worms is supplemented with agents that relieve intoxication (sorbents), antiallergic drugs and vitamins.
Preventive measures
Considering that worms are very easily transmitted from animals or an infected person, every effort should be made to prevent their appearance.To do this, you must strictly observe hygiene.An important factor in protection from worms is the correct preparation of the products from which food is prepared.
Doctors recommend carrying out an annual preventive procedure to eliminate worms in spring and autumn.Even if a person has no obvious symptoms of infection.Its maximum effectiveness can be achieved if all family members take the drug prescribed by the doctor.Most parasites are so small that you can only see photos of the eggs of some worms, taken through a powerful microscope when examining feces or other biomaterial.