There is a risk of contracting worms even without leaving the house. Various types of helminths can be found in household items, notes, dishes, food and drinking water.
Parasites enter the human body in a convenient way for them: they can enter the digestive system with food, water, dirty hands or insect bites.
In addition, helminths affect certain internal organs, use the resources of the human body, cause mechanical damage and actively reproduce. Their vital processes are accompanied by unpleasant and often dangerous symptoms and damage to various organs.
How to recognize intestinal worms
Intestinal helminthiasis brings together a group of diseases caused by worms of different types. Most of the time, it is possible to identify ascariasis (roundworm), enterobiasis (worms), ankylostomatidosis (hookworms). These parasites live in the lumen of the human intestine, feed on its contents and their presence can be suspected by a series of characteristic symptoms:
- Dramatic weight loss without changing diet and physical activity. The helminths of the intestinal group use the nutrients of the human body as a source of energy for growth and reproduction, and their fixation devices in the intestine (suction cups, hooks) damage their walls and interfere with the absorption of the remaining trace elements.
- Pain in the stomach, navel, itching in the rectum are caused by the movement of worms, mechanical damage 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 stool, 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 intoxication phenomena, which are caused by the waste products of helminths. This is most often manifested by itchy skin, redness in certain areas, rashes (blisters, blisters of different sizes).
The diagnosis of intestinal helminthiasis includes fecal studies, clinical and biochemical blood tests (eosinophilia, leukocytosis) and, if necessary, ultrasound data of the body.
Signs of the appearance of parasites in the liver
A large amount of nutrients accumulate in the human liver and intense blood circulation occurs, which is convenient for parasites. Common hepatic helminthiasis: fascioliasis, opistorchiasis, dichroceliosis, caused by worms from the group of liver worms.
You can identify them by specific resources:
- Acute pains in the right hypochondrium are caused by the mechanical effect 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 block the bile ducts, making the flow of bile more difficult, the digestion process in the body is difficult and the patient shows signs of jaundice. The visible mucous membranes of a person acquire a yellow tint and, with the development of the pathology, the skin is also stained.
- The non-specific symptoms of the appearance of parasites are a deterioration of the general condition of the body, weight loss, nausea, lethargy.
To clarify the diagnosis, they donate blood for analysis. Leukocytosis, eosinophilia are detected and biochemical tests will indicate an increase in the activity of liver enzymes (ALT, AST). During ultrasound, liver damage will be visible in the body: enlargement, inflammation and, in some cases, parasitic cysts can be found.
Which indicates the presence of pulmonary helminths
Some parasites (roundworm, toxoplasma, echinococcus, tsenur) can go from the gastrointestinal tract to the lungs of a person with blood or lymph flow. They multiply in the alveoli, making breathing difficult, and some species (single-chambered echinococci) form cysts, causing damage to the organ's structure.
It can be difficult to determine the presence of parasites in the lungs, as the symptoms are similar to the manifestations of respiratory diseases of viral and non-infectious etiology (bronchitis, ARVI). Cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, fever indicate the need for further examination of the patient's body.
For the diagnosis of pulmonary helminthiasis, the X-ray method will be the most informative. The images will show lesions in the human body caused by echinococci (cysts) and bovine tapeworms (fibrous formations), which need to be differentiated from neoplasms, cysts of different etiologies and pneumonias.
Bloodborne Parasites
Single-cell protozoan worms can be found in the lumen of the vessels. Babesias, plasmodiums (malaria plasmodium), trypanosomes, microfilariae, schistosomes cause dangerous diseases that represent a threat to human life.
By destroying the shaped elements, they interrupt the body's energy metabolism processes and block the supply of nutrients to organs and tissues.
In most cases, human infection occurs after being bitten by insects or ticks. After a while, signs of anemia appear in the body: pallor and then cyanosis of the mucous membranes, dizziness, sudden weight loss and deterioration of health. Without timely medical care, blood parasites can pose a serious threat to human life.
Diagnosis involves performing microscopic blood tests, during which you can find single-celled parasites and destroyed erythrocytes, as well as determining the type of worm. Treatment is long-term, carried out stationarily, under the supervision of a qualified doctor.
Unusual parasitic habitats
Some types of helminths can penetrate the human heart, subcutaneous tissue (dirofilariae), brain and spinal cord (cysticercosis, echinococcus). It is possible to become infected not only in exotic countries, but also by eating familiar foods that have not undergone adequate 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 nerve phenomena.
Headaches of unexplained etiology, tremors (tremors) of the extremities, changes in tactile sensitivity, impaired coordination of movement, severe deterioration of hearing and vision - signs of invasion development depend on the location of the worms andof their larvae.
Adult parasites can be seen visually under the skin, usually accompanied by tingling and tingling sensations, as well as in the eyes, ear canals and other locations.
What to do if you see signs of worm infestation
Diseases of parasitic etiology are treated under medical supervision after all necessary examinations and determination of the type of parasite. Prescribe anthelmintic drugs with narrow or wide spectrum of action, perform 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 on time. If you postpone a doctor's appointment or start taking medications on your own, the healing process can be delayed and many types of parasites can damage vital organs or systems in the body, or even lead to death.