Parasitic infestations often go unnoticed. And the first symptoms of worms in humans are not specific, so the sick person does not go to the doctor for a long time. Then the patient may think that he is overworked, suffering from gastritis or intoxication, experiencing an exacerbation of allergies or arthritis.
How to suspect the appearance of worms
Signs of helminths in the body depend on the type and localization of the parasite. Some symptoms appear soon after infection. Others occur after some time and indicate the migration of worms in the body, an increase in intoxication, a lack of nutrients or vitamins.
The most common signs of worms in adults include:
- Increased body temperature. Fever may not be expressed, up to 37. 5 ° C, in the short term. Episodes of increased temperature coincide with periods of deterioration, accompanied by an increase in various groups of lymph nodes.
- One of the most common signs of the presence of helminths is abdominal pain. Sensations of discomfort have a specific localization: in the navel, liver or movement. The pain is accompanied by a violation of the stool, the appearance of impurities in the stool: mucus, blood. More often there are bouts of diarrhea, but with blockage of the intestinal lumen by parasites, the development of obstruction is also possible.
- Itching in the anus is the first characteristic sign and symptom of intestinal worms. It occurs at night, forcing a person to scratch his anus.
- Helminths cause allergic reactions of a skin or respiratory type as a result of the circulation of their decomposition products, toxins, in the body. So, a person complains of exacerbation of bronchial asthma, the appearance of dermatitis, eczema.
- When infected with worms, beriberi develops. It manifests itself in the form of a deterioration in the condition of the hair, nails, the characteristic "jamming" in the corners of the mouth, dry skin. The lack of iron in the body provokes the development of anemia, paleness of the skin, the appearance of bruises under the eyes.
- Helminths also have a pathogenic effect on the nervous system, as a result of which the patient suffers from headaches, irritability, poor performance, intermittent sleep, and emotional instability.
- Worms that migrate through the respiratory system (roundworms) cause a person to have bouts of dry, persistent cough. With the movement of parasites in the muscles, the development of intoxication, sick people complain of pain, muscle and joint pain.
In a note!
The first symptoms of infection may appear a few days after the penetration of helminths into the body of an adult. Most often they occur after 2-3 weeks from the moment of contact with the parasite, and with migratory worms - after months, years.
The combination of different symptoms does not clearly indicate a specific disease, but it is a reason to worry about your health and consult a doctor. If a sick person is engaged in self-diagnosis, seeking information on how to understand that he has worms, he risks wasting time and suffering from life-threatening complications.
What is the danger of parasitic infection?
Helminths in the body not only take the necessary nutrients and vitamins from a person. Worms poison the patient with decomposition products, affect the internal organs. Parasitic worms in humans can cause ailments so serious that they require urgent surgery and, in some cases, the removal of part of the organ:
- acute intestinal obstruction;
- violation of the integrity of the intestine with the development of peritonitis;
- appendicitis;
- biliary tract blockage;
- eye damage.
Important!
Among the late consequences of invasion, leading to deterioration of the condition, death of the patient, are cirrhosis and liver cancer, pneumonia, pleurisy, sclerosis of lung tissue, myocarditis, meningitis, disability auditory and visual, the episyndrome.
How does worm infestation occur?
To solve the issue of helminth prevention, it is necessary to have information about the origin of the parasites. The most common infection mechanisms include: food, household-contact, percutaneous, transmissible (associated with hematophagous insects).
These are the most typical situations in which worms appear in the body:
- The use of vegetables, fruits, berries or greens contaminated with parasite eggs.
- Eating undercooked meat, fish with larvae of helminths. Feeding game that has not passed the veterinary control. Thus, Trichinella can withstand even prolonged meat stewing and retain its viability.
- Violation of hygiene rules: formal attitude to wash hands after returning from the street, contact with pets or street animals.
- Bathing in reservoirs containing worm larvae.
- Contact with soil containing parasite larvae while gardening.
- Work in conditions where there is an increased risk of infection with helminths: in children's groups, food, animal husbandry, poultry farming.
Where are worms found in the human body?
There are many medical myths about where worms live in the human body. Not all of them are based on parasitological data. Some helminths occupy several sections of the intestine and multiply in it. Humans may be the main hosts of the parasite. The so-called human worms go through the stage of sexual reproduction in the body, then come out with the feces. In the case of animal helminths, a person is an intermediate host, within which only an asexual (parthenogenetic) phase is possible. The parasites spread to the internal organs, causing damage to them. So worms can be detected in the human body:
- under the skin;
- in the liver;
- in the bladder;
- In the eyes;
- in the muscles;
- in lungs and heart;
- in the brain.
If we consider the descriptions of the life cycle of the helminth in the form of a photo with explanations, we can trace its migration through the body and guess what the main symptoms of the disease will look like.
Diagnosis of worms
The appearance of abdominal pain, fever, rashes, cough with sputum, inflammatory and allergic changes in the blood picture are the basis for monitoring a person for parasites. Infectologists recommend laboratory tests to detect the helminth or the immune response to its presence in the body.
The following methods help identify worms in a person:
- stool analysis for parasite eggs;
- scraping or smear for enterobiasis;
- immunological tests to detect antibodies against the helminth;
- PCR analysis for DNA fragments from worms;
- worm detection in duodenal contents, tissue biopsy samples.
These methods will help find out the type of parasite and choose an effective drug. If the internal organs are damaged, the following will help diagnose the helminth:
- chest x-ray;
- Ultrasound of the liver, heart, pancreas;
- cystoscopy;
- MRI of the brain.
If necessary, the infectious disease specialist will refer to a neurologist, ophthalmologist, cardiologist, urologist for consultation.
In a note!
You should not try to recognize helminths on your own, resort to "unique computer diagnostics" outside the medical institution. This will lead to loss of time, deterioration of health.
Treatment of worms in humans.
If a disease is detected, the infectious disease specialist will give full recommendations on the treatment of the disease, regimen and diet. If necessary, the doctor will suggest hospitalization in the hospital. There is no single "magic" drug for worms, symptoms and treatment of helminths in an adult may vary.
You need to know the basic principles of parasite therapy:
- To combat worms, drugs are used. The choice of treatment regimen (dose, duration of the course, frequency of administration) depends on the type of helminth, the state of the body of the sick person.
- In severe cases of illness, care is provided in a hospital setting.
- You should not independently reduce the dose, reduce the duration of treatment with tablets or suspension of worms.
- Some drugs require a diet, refusing to drink alcohol.
- There are no "magic" remedies that will allow you to quickly get rid of helminths in 1 day. For the treatment of some worms in humans, short courses are used, but it is impossible to destroy all the parasites in the body with one tablet, tincture or ointment.
- Herbal preparations are used in sick people who, for health reasons, are contraindicated in drugs in the form of tablets or suspensions.
- Antiallergic drugs, hepatoprotectors, enterosorbents, immunomodulators are prescribed as adjuvant therapy. By themselves, they do not help get rid of worms from a person, but rather improve the general well-being of a person, eliminating unpleasant symptoms of the disease and side effects of treatment.
Important!
Folk remedies are used only as an auxiliary method of therapy. The independent use of alternative medicine is fraught with deterioration.
pharmacy funds
Treatment with drugs from the group of anthelmintic drugs helps to destroy and expel parasites from the body. Pharmaceutical drugs have different points of application:
- disrupt the absorption of nutrients by parasites;
- disrupt the metabolism of worms;
- cause paralysis of the musculature of helminths.
In a note!
With proper use and prevention of helminthiasis in the future, worm remedies really help to permanently rid a person of parasites that have settled in the intestines and internal organs. But if the patient neglects the elementary rules of hygiene, it is possible that he will be re-infected with parasites.
Additionally, an infectious disease specialist can prescribe herbal remedies that help poison and drive away worms in humans. The doctor will recommend certain herbs, based on information about the state of the body and the type of parasites. To cure the patient, apply: pumpkin seeds, tansy herb and centaury.
Folk remedies for worms.
Many patients reject traditional methods of therapy, hoping for help from traditional medicine. Infectologists warn that attempts to get rid of worms at home with questionable solutions, infusions can lead to further intoxication and allergic reactions. If you miss the time, the disease will progress, a fatal outcome is possible.
To expel helminths from the body, the following folk remedies are widely used:
- onion decoction;
- pomegranate rind;
- enemas and ingestion of pumpkin seeds;
- unsweetened vegetable and sour berry juices;
- garlic with milk;
- soda enemas;
- tincture of wormwood
Treatment Reviews
Before starting a course of therapy, patients consider various options for treating parasites, trying to understand how to correctly poison helminths. In their reviews, people who have had a helminthic invasion describe traditional drug therapy as quite an effective method. It is extremely rare to get rid of helminths with folk remedies.
- "I began to worry about the itching in the anus. He went to the therapist, received the direction of the scraping. It was very unpleasant that pinworms were found in the scraping. I read how dangerous helminths are and decided not to poison myself with self-medication. For doctor's advice, took an anthelmintic drug - 1 tablet 1 time a week. The course lasted 2 weeks, I immediately felt relief, the itching disappeared. I think it was not such a terrible infection, but the drug worked "perfectly well".
- "I got worms after eating fish at a party. Diarrhea soon started. I lost weight, my skin became dry and itchy. I studied in detail the information on how to treat parasites and how to restore the body later, I started taking an anthelmintic drug myself. I was embarrassed to go to the doctor. The drug did not help. I tried to fight the worms with folk methods: I bitterly did a liver cleanse, drank milk with garlic and gave myself an enema. But it did not get better. I had I have to go to an infectious disease specialist, I'm being treated with a benzimidazole-class anthelmintic medication. While I was "growing up" to go to the doctor, I lost 4 kilos, turned pale, nervous".
Prevention
Knowing how worms appear in the body, anyone can protect themselves and loved ones from infection. Prevention includes:
- Wash your hands with soap after contact with animals, when you return home.
- Regular deworming for pets.
- Timely change of bed linen.
- Periodic wet cleaning, aeration, cleaning of carpets and upholstered furniture.
- Eat meat that has passed veterinary control.
- Thorough heat treatment of meat and fish.
- Refusal to eat raw meat, fish, offal.
Helminth infection requires immediate treatment. Attention should be paid to symptoms such as: diarrhea, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, weight loss, skin rash, cough, fever and consult a specialist immediately. After treatment, precautions should be taken to prevent reinfection.