Parasitic diseases or the defeat of the human body by parasites, pathogenic fungi and bacteria are the second most common after infections of the respiratory tract. The main danger is that people are not always informed about the presence of such a lesion, and the symptoms characteristic of the disease may not appear for months, while parasites cause irreparable damage to health. Symptoms of parasites in the body for a long time are disguised as fatigue and minor pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract.
Helminthiasis is not just a disease of "dirty hands". Eating poorly washed fruits, raw fish (sushi), and inadequately fried meat can cause worms and other protozoa to appear. Helminth eggs can be passed from an infected person to a healthy person through tactile contact.
WHO statistics are frightening - around ¾ of the entire population of the planet are infected with various parasites. The incidence rate in adults and children with pets is 99. 9%.
It is possible to get rid of helminths with the help of medicines and folk remedies, but there are difficult cases when only surgical intervention will help to get rid of pests.
Which human organs can be infected by parasites?
There are three ways in which worms and helminths can enter the human body - through the mouth, mucous membranes and skin. Against the background of a weakened immune system, parasites multiply freely in the body. Immunity is even more depleted, a secondary immunodeficiency develops, a general allergy of the body is manifested, and resistance to various types of infection decreases. Acute pathologies develop into chronic ones, take a severe course.
The preferred habitat of parasites are all parts of the gastrointestinal tract. Of the 300 types of parasitic diseases, 70% are intestinal forms. Extraintestinal types of helminthiasis include:
- skin and subcutaneous adipose tissue;
- liver;
- muscle tissue;
- light;
- brain;
- heart tissue;
- eyeball;
- blood;
- joint capsules.
The time at which the first symptoms of a lesion appear depends on the type of parasites, the number, the location of their localization, as well as the current state of health.
The primary symptoms of parasites in the body are similar for all types of helminth infestation:
- appetite disappears;
- salivation increases;
- diarrhea alternating with constipation;
- attacks of nausea and vomiting;
- sleep disorder.
Grinding teeth while sleeping can indicate the presence of worms in a child's body.
The main characteristics of helminthiasis are general malaise, increased irritability, mild dizziness, weight loss and the development of iron deficiency anemia. When allergic reactions occur (in 70% of cases), parasitic lesions are ignored and not treated in a timely manner.
The main types of parasites and the characteristic symptoms of their presence
Currently, 70 types of parasites have been identified that can live in humans. They are divided into the following subgroups:
- round worms (worms);
- tapeworms (tapeworms);
- subcutaneous helminths;
- leech (leech);
- tissue parasites;
- protozoa-protozoa.
The symptoms of different types of parasites can be different. To understand whether or not the human body is affected, we will consider some of the most typical cases.
pinworms
Enterobius vermicularis or pinworms are roundworms. They feed on blood and intestinal contents. These 0. 5-1 centimeter white worms cause a widespread helminthiasis - enterobiasis. According to statistics, the total proportion of this disease in all lesions is 65%, 90% of which are children.
Enterobiasis is contagious and spreads from person to person. The main way for parasites to enter the body is by ingesting eggs. The life cycle is 4 weeks - during this time males and females develop from the eggs that exit through the anus and lay eggs on the skin around it and in the perineum. Moving and laying eggs causes a sharp burning sensation to the skin.
Pinworms are very difficult to treat because eggs don't just get on the skin. The parasite's eggs fall on bedding, shake off on the floor, and contaminate household items and toys.
It is difficult to determine the presence of these parasites in the body, but the signs and symptoms of their presence have their own peculiarities:
- frequent urge to urinate, bed-wetting;
- Flatulence and pain in the lower abdomen, often on the right side;
- loss of appetite;
- diarrhea;
- general muscle weakness;
- female pinworms and egg clutches are visually located in the folds of the anus.
With a small number of colonies, the analysis-based diagnosis may be false negative. To identify parasites, a triple analysis of feces and cockroaches is carried out, which is repeated after a few days. In rare cases, the doctor may prescribe a blood test with an enlarged white blood cell count.
Toxocars - symptoms and treatment of Toxocariasis varieties
Refers to a subset of nematodes that enter the body after contact with dogs, cats, or soil. Toxocars are not transmitted from person to person, but can be transmitted from the mother to the fetus in the uterus, or can be passed to the child with milk when breastfeeding. This type of parasite infestation often occurs in autumn or spring.
Symptoms of toxocariasis depend on where people are.
Visceral toxocariasis
This type of lesion is detected when parasites colonize a person's internal organs: liver, kidney, pancreas, brain, or heart. In the vast majority of cases, Toxocars settle in the patient's lungs. The following clinical picture is often observed:
- fever, chills, fever;
- the liver is thickened, the spleen is enlarged;
- lymph nodes increase slightly, are painful to palpate and detach from surrounding tissue;
- dry cough with wet wheezing, mostly at night;
- Difficulty breathing and shortness of breath;
- too frequent bronchitis and bronchopneumonia.
Failure to treat helminthiasis of this type can be fatal. Parasites in the heart can lead to death.
Neurological toxocariasis
Pathology occurs when parasites invade the central nervous system. Symptoms of the presence of parasites in the human body:
- Children become hyperactive, fail neuropsychological tests and lag behind in development.
- Adults complain that it is difficult for them to read and cannot explain why;
- memory is deteriorating;
- All kinds of neurological disorders manifest themselves.
If tosocars remain in the brain, convulsions and epileptiform seizures, paresis and paralysis of the limbs are possible.
Skin toxocariosis
Symptoms appear as localized urticaria, eczema, or papular eruptions that occur when the Toxocar larvae migrate. The patients complain of unbearable itching and the affected areas swell, in addition to rashes and blisters, and become red. Sagging skin appears in the areas.
Eye toxocariosis
A lesion in which the parasite larvae colonize the eyeball. Their migration is also clearly visible to the naked eye. Only one eye is affected. In most cases there is only one parasite present. However, there are other signs of the presence of parasites:
- inflammation of the choroid;
- purulent inflammation of the tissues of the vitreous humor;
- Children develop strabismus;
- In the exudate of the eyeball there may be formations in the form of "snowballs".
The main diagnostic technique for any form of toxocariasis is medical history, immunological tests, and a detailed blood test. Stool exams are not done because these parasites do not live in the gut. With appropriate medical treatment, the prognosis for recovery is favorable.
Wide ribbon
This parasite enters the human body through the consumption of raw fish or caviar. The disease is called diphyllobothriasis and it is not transmitted from person to person.
Broad tapeworm can only exist in the small intestine. There are specific symptoms of its presence that develop in the following order:
- nausea, abdominal pain, vomiting;
- feverish conditions;
- decreased or increased appetite;
- Constipation alternating with diarrhea;
- gradual increase in symptoms of B12 deficiency anemia;
- intestinal obstruction due to obstruction of the intestinal lumen by an overgrown helminth, as well as violation of superficial and deep sensitivity;
- unsteady gait and crawling under the skin;
- Parasite particles can be present in the stool.
Diagnosis of the presence of parasites is made based on the results of blood tests and coproovoscopy.
Bull tapeworm
This tapeworm can grow up to 7-10 meters long. The parasite enters the human body in the form of larvae or eggs found in poorly cooked or raw infected beef. The disease is called teniarinchiasis, and adults are more prone to it.
Signs of parasites in the human body with teniarinchiasis appear one after the other:
- there is a persistent feeling of constant hunger, false bulimia;
- the appetite decreases, sometimes to the point of complete absence;
- Pain in the abdominal cavity, which can be localized in different ways, increases, the iliac region on the right hurts more;
- persistent severe flatulence and recurring diarrhea;
- Inflammation of the tongue develops;
- weakened people can have trouble sleeping, fainting and seizures.
It is quite easy to identify and check the defeat of the bovine tapeworm and its individual segments - proglottids, which, especially at night, often crawl out of the anus without a bowel movement.
The simplest and most effective diagnostic method is scraping and analyzing feces for the content of proglottid eggs. The prognosis for treatment is favorable.
Echinococcus
Echinococcus belongs to the class of tapeworms. The main source is stray dogs, wolves, jackals and foxes that feed on carrion infected with Echinococcus. It is possible to become infected with parasites from a domestic dog after coming into contact with stray relatives or the feces of infected animals.
Infection in humans occurs when the larvae of the parasite are swallowed, usually with contaminated water. It is possible for the eggs to be inhaled with a gust of wind and stick to the lining of the nose or throat, and if the sputum is swallowed and enters the digestive tract.
The larva of the parasite, which has entered the intestine, burrows into the bloodstream and with the venous blood flow reaches the liver, where it is fixed. If fixation does not occur, Echinococcus can affect the lungs or other organs. Contrary to popular belief, these parasites do not live in human muscles.
The larva catches itself on organ tissue, begins to grow and forms a cyst. In the event of her death, cyst suppuration occurs. When a person is infected with a large number of larvae, numerous live and dead echinococcal cysts form.
Symptoms of the presence of this type of parasite do not last long, but when the cyst grows in the liver the following symptoms appear:
- Injury to the stool, frequent vomiting, pain in the solar plexus;
- nodules can be felt in the liver;
- When the cysts are compressed, jaundice develops, accompanied by characteristic symptoms that are associated with very severe itching.
- When a purulent cyst is opened, severe pain, allergic reactions and even anaphylactic shock occur.
If the parasite has attached itself to the lungs, it leads to shortness of breath, weak breathing, chest pain and cough with bleeding. A breakthrough of a cyst in the pleural area is fatal. If a breakthrough in the bronchi develops, suffocation, blue skin, and severe allergic reactions occur.
The diagnosis is clarified by a serological blood test and confirmation by ultrasound. Echinococcosis can only be treated surgically! Specific antiparasitic drug treatment is only carried out in the case of massive infection. It is useless to drink alcohol or take other folk remedies for these parasites.
Giardia
It is quite easy to become carriers of these parasites - human infection occurs with cysts from cats, dogs, and rodents. In the body, parasites are localized not only in the liver, but also in the large and small intestines. Giardiasis affects children and adults with compromised immunity and low stomach acid.
The disease is characterized by an undulating course with progressive neurological and allergic symptoms:
- cramping pain on the right side, especially after consuming fatty foods;
- diarrhea alternating with constipation;
- dry and bitter mouth;
- If the hemoglobin level in the blood is normal, the skin is pale, especially the nose "white".
- hair falls out;
- Lip cracks and bumps appear;
- the skin on the palms and feet is peeling off, rashes appear on the skin;
- there are fits of choking cough;
- enlarged liver, spleen and lymph nodes;
- develops severe apathy and general weakness.
Feces and duodenal contents are examined to clarify the diagnosis.
If you see signs of parasites, you shouldn't self-medicate. You need to contact an infectious disease specialist. Only a doctor can accurately diagnose and prescribe an adequate complex treatment.