Helminth infection is possible even in our civilized society. These parasites quietly sneak into the body and poison it with the products of their vital activity. Helminth secretions are toxic and cause a variety of ailments, from hives to serious health problems. There are also deaths.
Common symptoms of worm infestation
Helminths live not only in the human intestines, some types of parasites also affect other organs, they can even be found in skeletal muscles. Thus, the course of each helminthiasis has its own characteristic features, but there are still common symptoms:
- Decreased work capacity;
- rapid fatigue;
- poisoning;
- weakness;
- drowsiness;
- lack of appetite;
- weightloss
- joint pain;
- constipation;
- bowel disorder;
- intolerance to any type of food.
Unfortunately, many people are infected with parasites, some don't even know it. Eggs or cysts can be swallowed along with apparently clean food. Often the worms settle in the child's body, getting along with poorly washed fruits and vegetables, with dirty hands, from cats, dogs, etc. The bad thing is that many times it is not even suspected that someone else lives inside us, since there are types of parasites that do not manifest themselves for a long time. Therefore, it is worth learning more about worms, what types there are and what symptoms of infection they cause.
roundworms in humans
In the human body, pinworms, roundworms, whipworms and trichinella (less often) can live.
Roundworms are roundworms with a spindle-shaped body, with a length of 15 to 40 cm and a width of 4 to 6 mm. This helminth lives in the small intestine, although there are cases where roundworms crawl into the bile ducts and clog them. Inside a person, the females mate with the males and lay eggs, which are passed out with the feces.
A person is not infected with roundworms that live in animals.
Also, the eggs need to mature in the ground. If they enter the human body with unwashed fruits or vegetables, the larvae are excreted into the intestines, quickly penetrate the blood vessels and reach the lungs with the bloodstream. There, the larvae mature and migrate to the intestine through the trachea and oral cavity. And there they are already breeding new individuals and everything is repeated. Roundworms live up to 14 months.
With ascariasis, the appetite decreases, there is nausea, diarrhea, pain in the intestines, and allergic manifestations. Sleep is also disturbed, irritability appears. Migrating from the lungs, there may be a cough. With the accumulation of roundworms and the formation of a ball by them, an intestinal obstruction can develop.
Pinworms are small whitish worms 3-12 mm long. Pinworms live in the small and large intestines. It is very easy to get infected with these helminths, it is enough to not wash your hands, or you can even swallow helminth eggs by inhaling dust. Female pinworms lay their eggs in the anus, which causes intense itching. Pinworm eggs are so small that they can even be found indoors in raised dust.
You can get infected through bedding, hygiene items, products, a handshake, etc. Also, pinworms undergo the same migration as roundworms. Adult individuals live in a person for a short time - only 1-2 months - and with proper hygiene, they can be eliminated in a short time. In addition to itching, there are: insomnia, absent-mindedness, irritability, allergic rash.
Whipworms are thin worms that live in the large intestine and reach a length of 30-35 mm. You can get infected with parasites in the same way as with roundworms. Whipworms attach to the walls of the intestines and suck blood. The toxins released by them cause headaches, lack of sleep, dizziness and nausea. The lifespan of helminths is 5 years.
Trichinella are small worms, only up to 4mm long. A person becomes infected through raw pork, which contains larvae. The adults live in the intestines, mate and lay eggs, after which they die. Trichinella larvae are excreted, penetrate from the intestine into muscle tissue, where they form a capsule and can remain for years.
Helminthiasis causes the following disorders in the body:
- swelling of the face;
- swelling of the eyelids;
- swelling in the legs and hands;
- acne;
- Muscle pain;
- fever, temperature;
- headache;
- insomnia or, conversely, drowsiness;
- decreased mobility of the knee and elbow joints;
- Gastrointestinal disorders are observed.
Trichinosis is partially cured because if the adult worms can be killed by drugs, then the larvae in the skeletal muscles cannot be killed.
tapeworms in humans
The bull tapeworm can be up to 10 m long. Infection occurs by eating undercooked beef, which contains helminth larvae. Housewives can become infected by tasting raw minced meat for salt. In the body, saltpetre develops from the larva, which lives in the intestine, adhering to the wall to hold on. A person loses weight, loses appetite, dizziness, insomnia, nausea, and often vomiting.
The pork tapeworm is smaller, reaching only 2 m. Infection occurs after eating poorly processed pork. Symptoms are the same as with the bull tapeworm.
A broad tapeworm is 6 m to 15 m long. The source of infection is raw freshwater fish. Helminthiasis is manifested by weakness, nausea, vomiting, salivation, abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhea. There are always bright red sore spots and even cracks on the tongue.
The pygmy tapeworm is 3-5 cm long and they become infected with this helminth through contaminated door handles, toilet seats, if they have worm eggs. Children get sick more often. Helminthiasis causes a decreased appetite, nausea and abdominal pain, and sometimes diarrhea. In rare cases, children may have seizures similar to epileptic seizures.
Echinococcus is one of the most dangerous helminths. The infection occurs from dogs and cats, carriers of adult parasites. In the human body, the larvae hatch from the eggs, which are transferred with the bloodstream to different organs, most often the liver, where they form echinococcus cysts. In some cases, they are even the size of a newborn baby's head. Cysts are removed only by surgery.
flukes in humans
The fluke parasitizes in the bile ducts and in the gallbladder itself. The size of helminths is small - 4-13 mm. The parasite enters the body through the use of slightly salted or poorly cooked (fried) fish. First, this helminthiasis manifests itself with a high temperature (up to 40 degrees), pain in the joints and muscles, disorders in the gastrointestinal tract, and in rare cases, jaundice develops. Then the acute symptoms fade, there are paroxysmal pains in the pancreas. There may be complications.
Fasciola is dangerous to health. The worms are up to 3-7 cm long, they also settle in the gallbladder and biliary tract. A person becomes infected through unboiled water or by eating aquatic plants. There is weakness, fever, pain in the head and abdomen, hives.
In conclusion about human helminths
Some types of worms live in the human body for years, since they can hardly manifest themselves in any way. Often the symptoms of helminthiases are similar to those of gastrointestinal diseases, so a misdiagnosis is made if special tests for helminths are not carried out. But any parasites must be urgently removed, since they not only remove useful substances from the body, but also release toxins that are dangerous to health.