There is a risk of contracting worms without leaving home.Various types of helminths can be found in household items, banknotes, dishes, food and drinking water.
Parasites enter the human body in a way convenient for them: they can enter through the digestive system with food, water, through dirty hands or insect bites.
In addition, helminths infect certain internal organs, use the resources of the human body, cause mechanical damage and actively reproduce.Its vital processes are accompanied by unpleasant and often dangerous symptoms and damage to various organs.
How to recognize intestinal helminths
Intestinal helminthiases comprise a group of diseases caused by worms of different types.Most often, ascariasis (roundworms), enterobiasis (pinworms), hookworm (hookworms) can be identified.These parasites live in the lumen of the human intestine, feed on its contents and their presence can be suspected by several characteristic symptoms:
- Dramatic weight loss without changing your diet and physical activity.Helminths of the intestinal group use nutrients from the human body as a source of energy for growth and reproduction, and their anchoring devices in the intestine (suction cups, hooks) injure its walls and interfere with the absorption of the remaining microelements.
- Pain in the stomach, navel and itching in the rectum are caused by the movement of worms, the mechanical damage they cause, as well as the release of larvae or adults from the body into the external environment.
- Various digestive disorders: diarrhea or constipation, flatulence, presence of mucus, foam or blood in the stool, nausea, vomiting.In some cases, adult parasites can be found in feces.
- The human body can react to the appearance of parasites with allergic reactions and intoxication phenomena caused by helminth residues.More often this is manifested by itchy skin, redness in certain areas, rashes (vesicles, blisters of different sizes).
Diagnosis of intestinal helminthiasis includes stool tests, clinical and biochemical blood tests (eosinophilia, leukocytosis) and, if necessary, ultrasound data of the body.
Signs of parasites in the liver
A large amount of nutrients accumulates in the human liver, and intense blood circulation also occurs, which is convenient for parasites.Common hepatic helminthiasis: fascioliasis, opisthorchiasis, dicroceliosis, caused by worms from the liver fluke group.
They can be identified by specific signs:
- Acute pain in the right hypochondrium is caused by the mechanical action of helminths.Thus, the echinococcus forms cysts in the tissues of the organ, causing the development of inflammatory processes or even necrosis.
- Adult worms (roundworms) can obstruct the bile ducts, as a result of which the flow of bile stops, the digestion process in the body becomes difficult, and the patient shows signs of jaundice.A person's visible mucous membranes acquire a yellowish tint, and as the pathology develops, the skin also becomes colored.
- Nonspecific symptoms of the appearance of parasites will be deterioration in the general condition of the body, weight loss, nausea and lethargy.
To clarify the diagnosis, they donate blood for analysis.Leukocytosis, eosinophilia are detected and biochemical tests will indicate increased activity of liver enzymes (ALT, AST).When performing an ultrasound, damage to the liver will be visible in the body: enlargement, inflammation and, in some cases, parasitic cysts can be found.
What does the presence of lungworms mean?
Some parasites (ascaris, toxoplasma, echinococcus, acenur) can enter the human lungs from the gastrointestinal tract through the blood or lymph.They multiply in the alveoli, making breathing difficult, and some species (unilocular echinococcus) form cysts, damaging the structure of the organ.
Determining the presence of parasites in the lungs can be difficult, since the symptoms are similar to the manifestations of respiratory diseases of viral and non-infectious etiology (bronchitis, ARVI).Cough, difficulty breathing, chest pain, increased temperature indicate the need for an additional examination of the patient's body.
For the diagnosis of pulmonary helminthiasis, the most informative method will be the radiographic method.The photographs will show lesions on the human body caused by echinococci (cysts) and bovine tapeworm (fibrous formations), which then need to be differentiated from neoplasms, cysts of various etiologies and pneumonia.
Parasites that live in the blood
In the lumen of blood vessels, single-celled protozoan worms can be found.Babesia, plasmodium (malaria plasmodium), trypanosomes, microfilariae and schistosomes cause dangerous diseases that pose a threat to human life.
By destroying formed elements, they disrupt the body's energy metabolism processes and block the flow of nutrients to organs and tissues.
In most cases, human infection occurs after an insect or tick bite.After some time, signs of anemia appear in the body: pallor and then cyanosis of the mucous membranes, dizziness, sudden weight loss and deterioration in health.Without timely medical care, blood parasites can pose a serious threat to human life.
Diagnosis involves carrying out microscopic blood tests, during which single-celled parasites and destroyed red blood cells can be found, as well as the type of worm can be determined.The treatment is long-term and carried out on an inpatient basis, under the supervision of a qualified doctor.
Unusual parasite habitats
Some types of helminths can penetrate the human heart, subcutaneous tissue (dirofilaria), brain and spinal cord (cysticerci, echinococci).You can become infected not only in exotic countries, but also by eating familiar foods that have not been properly cooked, and pets can become carriers.Signs of invasion depend on the degree of damage to a specific organ.
In the brain, worms can form cysts and fibrous formations that cause nervous phenomena.
Headaches of unknown etiology, tremors (tremors) of the limbs, changes in tactile sensitivity, impaired coordination of movements, a sharp deterioration in hearing and vision - signs of the development of the invasion depend on the location of the worms and their larvae.
Adult parasites can be detected visually under the skin, often accompanied by itching and tingling sensations, as well as in the eyes, ear canals and other locations.
What to do if signs of worm infestation are noticed
Diseases of parasitic etiology are treated under the supervision of a doctor after carrying out all the necessary tests and determining the type of parasite.Antihelminthic drugs with a narrow or wide spectrum of action are prescribed, general strengthening and symptomatic therapy are carried out, which help to remove worms from the body.In some cases, surgery is indicated.
The prognosis for most diseases is favorable with timely initiation of treatment.If you postpone a doctor's appointment or start taking medication on your own, the recovery process may be delayed and many types of parasites can damage vital organs or body systems or even lead to death.