The prevalence of different types of worms is quite high.What types of worms occur in humans, symptoms and treatment of the disease called helminthiasis?Many types of parasites manifest differently when they enter the body.
Gastrointestinal disorders, nervous system disorders, and allergic skin reactions may occur among the many signs of worm infection.
It is now reliably known that many diseases, which at first glance are in no way related to infection with parasites, are due to the fact that a person has been infected with worms.People can be treated for years for a variety of liver, gastrointestinal, and other ailments, with no idea of the true cause of their illness.
Drug treatment of helminthiasis must be carried out under the supervision of a doctor, taking into account the patient's age, weight, and the type of parasite against which the therapy is directed.
Types of helminths
Currently, science knows a great variety of worms, each with a different shape and appearance.Depending on these characteristics, there are several classifications.Based on their habitat in the body, the following types of parasitic worms are distinguished: luminal and tissue worms.Luminal parasites live in the intestines (small and large), less often in other internal organs of humans and animals.Tissue worms are characterized by the fact that they are usually localized in body tissues or subcutaneous fat.
Depending on the way they penetrate and spread in the body, parasites are divided into 3 types: contact worms, biohelminths and geohelminths.Biohelminths include worms that change several hosts before their full development (these can be fish, insects);at the end of the chain, one person becomes the owner.
Geohelminths include parasites whose development is carried out directly, excluding intermediate hosts.Their eggs mature in the soil and infection occurs when ingested.The most common of these are human roundworm, whipworm, eel intestinalis and hookworm.
The peculiarity of contact worms is that they are transmitted from one person to another.These include dumplings and dwarf tapeworms.Roundworms cause a disease called enterobiasis, and dwarf tapeworms cause hymenolepiasis.
How can you get infected with helminths?
Infection with helminths can occur in 1 of 4 ways.Geohelminthiasis is a possible infection by parasites through the soil in which the mature larvae are found, by contact with animals, or by the transfer of larvae to food by flies.The second way of infection with worms is contact, that is, from person to person.This is how the most common parasites, pinworms, spread.You can become infected by eating fish infected with biological helminth samples or meat that has undergone weak heat treatment.And the last way is the penetration of larvae into the body through insect bites.
The most common way of infection with worms is oral infection, that is, a person simply swallows the worm larvae with water or food.A huge number of helminth eggs fall into the ground, so a person should wash his hands thoroughly after contact with the soil.This is especially true for children who often play in the sand.
Everything that grows in the ground and that is connected to it (vegetables, fruits) must be washed and treated with boiling water before consumption.Pets that are free to be outdoors are common sources of helminthiasis for humans.
Fungal infection is the easiest way for children of preschool age.The female lays more than 5 thousand larvae near the anus, causing severe itching in this place.A child, after scratching the itchy spot, infects everything with these eggs: bedding, toys, clothes.Then hundreds of balls of larvae settle on the hands of everyone who has touched these objects, so they can infect every member of the family.
Larvae of the worm are concentrated in large numbers in open water bodies, so it is strictly forbidden to swallow water while swimming.The water in the wells is also contaminated;must be boiled before use or disinfecting filters must be used.
Signs of helminthiasis
The first symptoms of worm infection in adults or children are sudden weight loss and itching of the anus.But this is only a small part of the most common symptoms, since there can be many more of them, and sometimes the parasites can only be identified with special research.Symptoms of worm infection can often be various nervous system disorders and severe general weakness of the body.
During their life cycle, worms produce a huge amount of toxins, which manifests itself in severe poisoning of the human body.Patients may experience headache, nausea, dizziness, possibly fever and sudden joint pain.A person infected with helminths suffers from a vitamin deficiency, which, together with the disruption of the functioning of the nervous system, ultimately leads to a feeling of chronic fatigue, which causes severe drowsiness and apathy.
If the worms parasitize in the intestines, and not in other organs or tissues of the human body, then the first sign of the appearance of worms is a malfunction of the digestive system.The patient may experience diarrhea or constipation, vomiting, severe abdominal pain and nausea.Pain in the right hypochondrium or increased gas formation may occur.The symptoms that appear depend on the type of helminth.The general intoxication of the body contributes to a decrease in the immunity of the infected person, which increases the risk of infectious diseases.And since the parasites deprive the patient of certain useful substances that he needs, the resistance of the human body decreases, which subsequently leads to the exacerbation of existing chronic diseases or various inflammations of the nasopharynx.
Another important and striking symptom of parasites entering the body is allergic skin reactions.Almost all patients infected with intestinal worms suffer from deterioration of the dermis.Allergies can have other manifestations besides skin rashes, including allergic rhinitis, persistent dry cough and asthma.
Treatment of helminthiasis with drugs
Parasitic infection can manifest itself in different ways.What to do if you notice symptoms of helminthiasis?First, you need to do the necessary research and determine exactly what type of worm infestation has occurred;the drug therapy prescribed by the doctor depends on it.Many anthelmintic drugs are known today.Among them are drugs that act against certain types of parasites and that have a broad spectrum of action.These drugs are highly toxic, so they should only be prescribed by a doctor, and only based on the results of tests, after identifying the exact type of helminth affecting the affected person.The approach to treating different types of worms is different;Medicines are selected individually for each patient, taking into account the type of parasites, the person's age and body weight.
Preventing the appearance of worms in adults does not require very complicated measures.It is necessary to check the purity of the water consumed, treat pets immediately, wash vegetables and fruits, and heat treat meat and fish.In order to prevent the appearance of worms, children attending preschool institutions must be vaccinated at least once a year.
Folk remedies to get rid of parasites
Traditional medicine knows many recipes for getting rid of parasites.Most often, garlic, pumpkin seeds, tansy flowers, wormwood and walnuts are used for this.In folk medicine, one of the most popular and effective recipes for getting rid of worms is the use of pumpkin seeds.It is best to use unshelled seeds, and during cleaning a thin film should be kept between the seed and the shell.The seeds should be eaten in the morning, 300 g each, you can grind them first.After that, it is not recommended to eat and perform an enema for 4 hours.After a few weeks, this procedure can be repeated.
Thanks to thujone and tancitin, tansy has a strong anthelmintic effect.Thujone is a substance contained in the essential oil of this plant and has a paralyzing effect on helminths.And tancitin is an ingredient found in tansy flowers that increases the production of bile and gastric juices.To prepare the medicine, you need 1 tablespoon.l.Pour a glass of boiling water over the tansy flowers and let it brew for 1 hour.Then filter it and drink the resulting infusion three times a day, 1 tablespoon.l.30 minutes before meals.
Another herb, wormwood is known to be effective in fighting parasites.Alcoholic wormwood tincture is usually used for treatment.It should be taken three times a day, 20 drops 30 minutes before meals.
The infusion of garlic, walnut shells, onion and nettle has a strong anti-parasitic effect.Using recipes for infusions of these plants and vegetables, you can get rid of parasites without resorting to medication.However, before doing so, a mandatory medical consultation is recommended.