Helminthiasis- This is an infection with worms. It is registered in children and adults especially in hot and humid countries. The risk group is boys and girls aged 5-15 years, which is caused by knowledge of the outside world, low immune reactivity, and insufficient stomach pH. Target organs - liver, kidneys, lungs. The main habitat is the gastrointestinal tract.
Parasites penetrate through damaged mucous membranes and skin or through contaminated water and food. In the digestive system, young individuals enter the bloodstream through the destroyed wall.
At first, the helminth descends into the intestine, grows for 40-80 days, gradually turns into an adult, which in the final stage of development lays eggs that leave the body with feces.
Cause of disease
A person becomes infected after eating contaminated food and water or coming into contact with contaminated soil. Individuals are transmitted to others through common objects - dishes, toothbrushes, towels, forks, spoons, toys.
Provocative factors are non-compliance with hygiene rules, improper food preparation (cooking meat and fish at low temperatures), adherence to a raw food diet.
Eggs are carried by pets that are often walked outside.
Types of worms
Parasites are divided into classes that differ in the way they exist in the environment:
- Contacts. Sent between people.
- Geohelminthiases. For development, an intermediate host is not required; its habitat is land.
- Biohelminthiasis. At least two organisms are needed to live.
Science knows more than 350 species of parasites. The following are dangerous:
- Nematodes (roundworms) are responsible for the development of ascariasis and necatoriasis.
- Spinyheads (acanthocephalans) – disease: acanthocephalosis.
- Trematodes (flukes) – cause opisthorchiasis and fascioliasis.
- Cestodes (tapeworms) – tapeworms, echinococcus.
Helminths settle in the intestines, lungs, and gall bladder.
Clinical picture
Symptoms are determined by the type of worm, the organs affected, the patient's anatomical and physiological characteristics, and immunity.
Stream options:
- Acute.
Duration - 2-8 weeks. Intoxication and allergy syndrome occurs: weakness, loss of strength, nausea, vomiting, fever, rash, lymphadenopathy, lack of air, flatulence and abdominal pain. The pathognomonic symptom is bruxism (teeth grinding). It is especially visible at night. Local changes are possible - redness and irritation of the perianal area. - Chronicle.
Duration - several years. Patients worry about stool disorders, pain in the lower abdomen, sour or bitter belching, dyspepsia, intolerance to certain foods. Damage to the liver and gallbladder leads to jaundice (skin discoloration) and hepatitis. Nematodes cause bronchitis, pneumonia, respiratory failure, and heart muscle inflammation. Penetration into the central nervous system is accompanied by emotional lability, irritability, difficulty remembering new information, and insomnia.
Helminthiasis reduces immune reactivity, promotes the accumulation of secondary bacterial flora, caries, severe allergic reactions (anaphylactic shock), and exacerbation of concomitant pathologies.
Complications
Parasite waste products cause local symptoms (itching, urticaria rash), pneumonia, heart and bronchial asthma. Worms feed on human macronutrients, leading to psychomotor and mental retardation in children. Whipworms use red blood cells and hemoglobin, creating anemia. With massive infections, patients experience appendicitis, dysbiosis, frequent bile duct obstruction, and intestinal obstruction.
Diagnostics
At the first symptoms, you need to consult a specialist or a specialist therapist.
Enlargement of the spleen, liver, and regional lymph nodes is determined by palpation. In the CBC, the number of eosinophils is increased and the ESR is elevated.
To confirm the diagnosis and control treatment, the following is carried out:
- scraping from the perianal area;
- examination of biological material (vomit, urine, sputum, feces);
- coprogram;
- allergy test.
The severity and level of pathological changes are detected by chest x-ray, ultrasound, computed tomography with contrast, MRI, gastro- and colonoscopy.
The diagnosis of helminthiasis is difficult, because of the irregular release of eggs, the loss of antibodies 2-3 months after infection, and the diversity of the clinical picture.
Treatment
Patient management tactics are determined by the doctor after consultation.
Drug therapy involves the selection of anthelmintic drugs based on symptoms and types of worms.
Bronchopulmonary manifestations are treated with steroids, expectorants, antihistamines and antispasmodics. Normal intestinal microflora is restored with probiotics, and digestion is improved with enzymes. Surgery is performed to remove the cyst.
After 3-4 weeks, a control stool test is taken three times.
Prevention
The following recommendations help prevent helminthic attacks:
- Wash your hands after visiting the toilet and returning from a walk, and before eating.
- Rejection of bad habits.
- Rinse vegetables, greens, apples, oranges under the tap.
- Proper product processing.
- Drink boiled water.
- Active lifestyle.
Drug prophylaxis (for adults, children, pets) with non-specific anthelmintic drugs is indicated twice a year.