About 80% of the planet's inhabitants are infected with various helminths.It often takes a long time and without success to treat 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 bloodstream.
What kind of worms do humans have?
Helminths colonize the intestines or parasitize, living in any other organ.There are several varieties, the most common being nematodes.Their body has a round, elongated cross-section shape, tapering at the ends.More often than others, infection occurs:
- roundworms, trichinae, settling in the small intestine and other organs;
- whipworms which live in the large intestine and feed on blood and mucus;
- pinworms that accumulate in the cecum and colon.
Pinworms are especially common in children when carrying out a stool test for enterobiasis.
In addition to those listed, there are over a hundred less common parasites that inhabit different parts of the intestine.For example, in humans, worms such as hookworm and roundworm are found in the thin segment;the thick section is often blocked by whipworms.Humans become hosts to adult tapeworms, which have flat, long bodies.Large bovine and porcine tapeworms, cestodes and echinococci inhabit the intestines.
Fluke worms have suckers on their bodies ranging from a few millimeters in length (Siberian fluke) to 7 cm (fasciola).Parasites are transmitted to humans through the consumption of raw fish and unboiled water.Sometimes infection with worms occurs through the skin when swimming in lakes and rivers (schistosome).Once established, they can feel good in various human organs for several years.
Infection methods
The routes by 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 as well as food and water.People simply ingest invisible organisms when they forget to wash their hands before eating.Worms in stool are rarely visible to the naked eye.But the flies that fly over the droppings still carry their eggs.If an insect lands on a piece of food, the risk of infection increases considerably.
Worms appear in humans after working with earth or sand without gloves.In the latter case, young children, for whom the sandbox is a favorite place to play, are more likely to suffer from parasites.Helminths reach the soil surface with the feces of animals - cats, dogs, livestock and are carried by flies.They enter the human body through unwashed hands, skin microtrauma and insufficiently processed vegetables.Inhalation of street dust, saturated with very tenacious larvae, can also become infected.
Another factor contributing to the appearance of worms is the use of poor quality water.It is strongly recommended not to swallow liquid while swimming in the sea, river or lake.It contains a large number of parasites from fish, waterfowl and domestic animal feces.If a person consumes raw fish or meat, there is a risk of infection and parasites - bovine tapeworm, pork tapeworm, tapeworm - settling in the body.In medical reference books there are photos of worms whose length reaches several meters.
Symptoms and signs of helminthic infestation
Having become hosts of parasites, people begin to lose weight quickly, feel exhausted and look pale.Indicate the presence of worms:
- pain throughout 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.This will help identify worms in the stool or special antibodies in the blood.
Symptoms increase in the absence of prompt treatment.Depending on which worms predominate in the body and where they accumulate, the signs of the disease differ.Bile stagnation occurs when the ducts become clogged with parasites.A person feels heaviness and pain in the right hypochondrium, bitterness in the mouth.Periodically suffer from bouts of nausea and constipation.
Many worms secrete substances that irritate the intestinal walls - diarrhea appears, in which the stool is watery and foamy.In addition to this, the patient feels increased gas formation, loud rumbling in the abdomen and pain in the navel area.
Worms, once in the human body, are capable of migrating.Their progression is accompanied by intense pain.Most often, a person with helminthiasis thinks that he is suffering from an exacerbation of arthritis.In fact, the unpleasant sensations caused by worms are the body's response to tissue damage.
A person experiences a state of apathy, he has a deterioration in his ability to concentrate and memory problems.This happens if the parasites are present in the body for a long time.A previously unusual allergy or intolerance of the body to certain foods occurs.Worms become responsible for skin problems.The most common:
- acne, pimples all over the body;
- urticaria, atopic dermatitis, eczema;
- too early formation of wrinkles;
- hair loss, baldness.
More frequent runny noses, bronchitis, asthma and pneumonia could well be caused by the migration of worms into the bloodstream.Sometimes parasites settle in the lungs, lay eggs there, which mature and develop into full-fledged individuals.On x-rays and scans obtained after tomography, worms look like a focal darkening of a round or oval shape.
The entry of toxic helminth waste into the blood causes people to complain of:
- constant anxiety, irritability;
- depression;
- insomnia.
Obesity and underweight are common symptoms of worms.Digestive problems and intoxication lead to a lack of appetite.A person loses weight.The prolonged presence of parasites causes a decrease in blood sugar and a constant feeling of hunger.At the cellular level, there is a lack of nutrients, 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 passing stools several times for analysis, it is not always possible to identify parasites.To accurately determine what type of worms have settled in a person, you will need to conduct a more detailed examination, including:
- general blood test with leukemia formula;
- biochemical blood test (liver tests);
- analysis of stools and rectal mucus.
Sometimes, to detect worms that have colonized the body, an examination of bile, sputum and small sections of skin is necessary.
Treating worms in an adult or child yourself is a dubious idea.Pharmacological drugs are quite toxic.At the same time, many of them have an effect directed against a specific species without affecting others.
If the test results reveal the presence of worms in a person's stool or the presence of parasites is confirmed by other diagnostic procedures, the infectious disease doctor selects the most effective drug.The doctor who prescribes the pills must indicate exactly how many times the medicine should be taken and its dose, depending on the patient's weight.Worm treatment is carried out:
- Albendazole;
- Paraziquantheloma;
- Medamine;
- Mebendazole;
- Pyrantel.
The procedure for getting rid of worms is supplemented by agents that relieve intoxication (absorbents), antiallergic drugs and vitamins.
Preventive measures
Since worms are very easily transmitted by animals or an infected person, every effort should be made to prevent their occurrence.To do this, you must scrupulously observe hygiene.An important factor in protection against worms is the proper preparation of 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 recommended by the doctor.Most parasites are so small that you can only see photos of the eggs of some worms, taken under a powerful microscope when examining feces or other biomaterials.