About 80% of the planet's inhabitants are infected with various helminths.It often takes a long and unsuccessful time to treat a disease whose real cause is parasites.Worms that can live in humans violate the integrity of vascular walls, block the intestinal lumen and damage internal organs.They produce toxic substances that enter the blood.
What kind of worms do people have?
Helminths colonize the intestines or parasitize, living in any other organ.There are several varieties, the most common being nematodes.Their body has an elongated, round cross-sectional shape, tapering 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 they do a stool test for enterobiasis.
In addition to those listed, there are more than a hundred less common parasites that inhabit various 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 clogged with whipworms.Humans become hosts for adult tapeworms, which have a flat, long body.Large bovine and porcine worms, cestodes and echinococci inhabit the intestines.
Fluke worms have suckers on their bodies that range from a few millimeters in length (Siberian fluke) to 7 cm (fasciola).Parasites are transmitted to humans as a result of consumption of raw fish and unboiled water.Sometimes infection with worms occurs through the skin while swimming in lakes and rivers (schistosoma).Once established, they can feel good in various human organs for several years.
Methods of infection
The routes by which different types of worms enter are different.The main method of infection by parasites is fecal-oral.It is associated with the penetration of helminths along with food and water.People simply eat 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 people 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 soil surface along with the feces of animals - cats, dogs, cattle and are carried by flies.They enter the human body through unwashed hands, microtraumas on the skin and insufficiently processed vegetables.Inhalation of road dust, saturated with very persistent larvae, can also become infected.
Another factor that contributes to the appearance of worms is the use of poor quality water.It is very undesirable to swallow the liquid while swimming in the sea, river or lake.It contains a large number of parasites from the feces of fish, waterfowl and domestic animals.If a person consumes raw fish or meat, there is a risk that infection will occur and parasites - bovine tapeworm, pig worm, tapeworm - will take up residence in the body.In medical reference books there are photos of worms, the length of which reaches several meters.
Symptoms and signs of helminthic infection
After becoming hosts to the parasites, people begin to lose weight quickly, feel exhausted and look pale.Indicate the presence of worms:
- pain in the whole body;
- painful sensations in the joints;
- general weakness;
- loss of appetite;
- diarrhea or constipation;
- nausea attacks.
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 specific antibodies in the blood.
Symptoms increase in the absence of timely treatment.Depending on which worms prevail in the body, where they accumulate, the signs of the disease will vary.Bile stagnation occurs when the ducts are blocked by 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 occurs, in which the stool is watery and foamy.In addition, the patient experiences increased gas formation, strong rumbling in the abdomen and pain in the navel area.
Worms, after entering the human body, 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 damage.
A person experiences a state of apathy, he has a deterioration in the 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 the culprit of skin problems.The most common:
- pimples, pimples all over the body;
- urticaria, atopic dermatitis, eczema;
- very early formation of wrinkles;
- hair loss, bald spots.
Most common runny noses, 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.On X-rays and scans obtained after tomography, worms appear as focal darkness of a round or oval shape.
The entry of toxic waste products of helminths into the blood causes people to complain of:
- constant anxiety, nervousness;
- depression;
- insomnia.
Both being overweight and underweight are common symptoms of worms.Digestive problems and intoxication lead to poor appetite.A person loses body weight.The long-term presence of parasites causes a decrease in the level of glucose in the blood 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 passing the feces for analysis several times, it is not always possible to identify the parasites.To accurately determine which type of worms have settled in a person, you will need to do a more detailed examination, including:
- general blood test with the leukemia formula;
- biochemical blood analysis (liver tests);
- stool and rectal mucus analysis.
Sometimes, to detect worms that have colonized the body, examination of bile, saliva and small pieces of skin is required.
Treating worms in an adult or child 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 revealed worms in a person's feces or the presence of parasites was confirmed by other diagnostic procedures, the infectious disease doctor chooses the most effective drug.The doctor who prescribes the pills must indicate exactly how many times the medicine will need to be taken and its dosage, based on the patient's weight.Treatment of worms is carried out:
- Albendazole;
- Paraziquantheloma;
- Medamine;
- Mebendazole;
- Pyrantel.
The procedure to get rid of worms is supplemented with agents that facilitate intoxication (sorbents), anti-allergic drugs and vitamins.
Preventive measures
Given that 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 strictly adhere to 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 for cleaning worms in spring and autumn.Even if a person has no visible symptoms of infection.Its maximum effectiveness can be achieved if all family members take the medicine recommended by the doctor.Most parasites are so small that you can only see pictures of the eggs of a few worms taken through a powerful microscope when examining feces or other biomaterial.