There is a risk that worms could get infected without leaving your home. Different types of helminths can be found on household items, banknotes, dishes, food, and drinking water.
Parasites get into the human body in a way that is convenient for them: they can get through the digestive system with food, water, dirty hands or insect bites.
In addition, helminths attack certain internal organs, use the resources of the human body, cause mechanical damage and actively multiply. Their vital processes are accompanied by unpleasant and often dangerous symptoms and damage to various organs.
How to recognize intestinal worms
intestinal worm is a group of diseases caused by worms of various types. Most commonly ascariasis (roundworms), enterobiasis (pinworms) and ankylostomatidosis (hookworms) can be detected. These parasites live in the lumen of the human intestine, feed on its contents and their presence can be suspected by a number of characteristic symptoms:
- Dramatic weight loss without changing diet and physical activity. Helminths of the intestinal group use the nutrients in the human body as a source of energy for growth and reproduction, and their devices for anchoring in the intestine (suction cups, hooks) injure its walls and interfere with the absorption of the remaining trace elements.
- Pain in the stomach, navel, itching in the rectum is caused by the movement of worms, mechanical damage that they cause, as well as the release of larvae or adults from the body to the external environment.
- Various digestive disorders: diarrhea or constipation, flatulence, presence of mucus, foam or blood in the feces, nausea, vomiting. In some cases, adult parasites can be found in the stool.
- The human body can react to the appearance of parasites with allergic reactions, the phenomena of poisoning caused by the waste products of helminths. More often this is manifested as itching of the skin, reddening of certain areas, rashes (blisters, blisters of different sizes).
The diagnosis of intestinal helminthiasis includes stool exams, clinical and biochemical blood tests (eosinophilia, leukocytosis) and, if necessary, ultrasound data from the body.
Signs of the appearance of parasites in the liver
A large amount of nutrients accumulate in the human liver, and there is also intense blood circulation, which is beneficial for parasites. Common hepatic helminthiasis: fascioliasis, opisthorchiasis, dicroceliosis, caused by worms of the liver fluke group.
You can identify them using certain functions:
- Sharp pain in the right hypochondrium is caused by the mechanical action of helminths. So, Echinococcus forms cysts in the tissues of the organ and provokes the development of inflammatory processes or even necrosis.
- Adult worms (roundworms) can block the biliary tract, which disrupts the outflow of bile, makes the digestive process difficult in the body, and leaves the patient with signs of jaundice. The visible mucous membranes of a person turn yellow, and as the pathology develops, the skin also becomes colored.
- Nonspecific symptoms of the appearance of parasites are deterioration in the general condition of the body, weight loss, nausea and lethargy.
To clarify the diagnosis, donate blood for analysis. Leukocytosis and eosinophilia are diagnosed, and biochemical tests indicate an increase in the activity of liver enzymes (ALT, AST). During the ultrasound, liver damage in the body is visible: enlargement, inflammation, and in some cases parasitic cysts can be found.
What indicates the presence of lungworms?
Some parasites (roundworm, Toxoplasma, Echinococcus, Tsenur) can enter the lungs of a person with blood or lymph flow from the gastrointestinal tract. They multiply in the alveoli and make breathing difficult. Some species (single-chamber echinococci) form cysts that damage the structure of the organ.
It can be difficult to determine the presence of parasites in the lungs because the symptoms are similar to the manifestations of respiratory diseases of viral and non-infectious etiology (bronchitis, ARVI). Cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, and fever indicate the need for additional examination of the patient's body.
The X-ray method is the most informative for the diagnosis of pulmonary helminthiasis. The pictures show lesions in the human body caused by echinococcus (cysts) and bovine tapeworm (fibrous formations), which then need to be differentiated from neoplasms, cysts of various etiology, and pneumonia.
Parasites in the blood
Protozoan unicellular worms are located in the lumen of the vessels. Babesia, plasmodium (Malaria plasmodium), trypanosomes, microfilariae and schistosomes cause dangerous diseases that pose a threat to human life.
By destroying the formed elements, they disrupt the processes of energy metabolism in the body and block the supply of nutrients to organs and tissues.
In most cases, humans become infected after they have been bitten by insects or ticks. After a while, signs of anemia develop 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.
During the diagnosis, microscopic blood tests are carried out, in which single-cell parasites and destroyed erythrocytes and the type of worm can be found. Treatment is long-term and inpatient under the supervision of a qualified doctor.
Unusual parasite habitats
Some types of helminths can penetrate the human heart, the subcutaneous tissue (dirofilariae), the brain and the spinal cord (cysticercus, echinococcus). It is possible to get infected not only in exotic countries, but also from eating familiar foods that have not undergone proper heat treatment, and pets can become carriers. The signs of invasion depend on the degree of damage to a particular organ.
In the brain, worms can form cysts, fibrous formations that cause nervous phenomena.
Headache of inexplicable etiology, tremors (tremors) of the extremities, changes in tactile sensitivity, impaired coordination of movements, severe deterioration in hearing and vision - signs of the development of an invasion depend on the location of the worms and their larvae.
Adult parasites can be seen visually under the skin, usually accompanied by itching and tingling, as well as in the eyes, ear canals, and other places.
What to do if you see signs of worm infestation?
Diseases of parasitic etiology are treated under medical supervision after all the necessary examinations and the determination of the type of parasite. Prescribe anthelmintics with a narrow or wide spectrum of action, conduct restorative and symptomatic therapy, promote the removal of worms from the body. In some cases, surgery is indicated.
The prognosis for most diseases is favorable if treatment is started in good time. Postponing a doctor's visit or taking medication yourself can delay the healing process, and many types of parasites can damage vital organs or body systems, or even cause death.