Infection with helminths is possible even in our civilized society. These parasites imperceptibly make their way into the body and poison it with the products of their vital activity. Helminth secretion is toxic and causes various diseases - from urticaria to serious health problems. There are also deaths.
Common symptoms of worm infection
Helminths live not only in the human intestine, some types of parasites infect other organs, they can even be in skeletal muscle. Therefore, the course of each helminthiasis has its own characteristic signs, but still has common symptoms:
- reduced productivity;
- rapid fatigue;
- intoxication;
- weakness;
- drowsiness;
- lack of appetite;
- weight loss;
- 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 with seemingly clean food. Often worms settle in the child's body, getting along with poorly washed fruits and vegetables, through dirty hands, from cats and dogs. The problem is that there is often no suspicion that someone else lives in us, because there are types of parasites that do not appear for a long time. That's why it's worth knowing better about worms, what species they are and what symptoms of infection they cause.
Human roundworms
In the human body can live pinworms, roundworms, whips and Trichinella (less common).
Roundworms are roundworms with a spindle-shaped body, 15-40 cm long and 4-6 mm wide. This helminth lives in the small intestine, although there are cases in which roundworms crawl into the bile ducts and clog them. Inside humans, females mate with males and lay eggs, which come out with the feces.
Man is not infected with roundworms living in animals.
The eggs must then mature in the soil. If they enter the human body with unwashed fruits or vegetables, the larvae are excreted in the intestines, they quickly penetrate into the blood vessels and reach the lungs with the flow of blood. There the larvae mature and migrate into the intestines through the trachea and oral cavity. And there new individuals are already hatching and everything is repeating itself. Roundworms live up to 14 months.
In ascariasis appetite decreases, there is nausea, diarrhea, intestinal pain, allergic reactions. Sleep is also disturbed, irritability appears. There may be a cough when migrating from the lungs. With the accumulation of roundworms and the formation of a ball of them, 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 not to wash your hands or you can even swallow the helminth eggs by inhaling the dust. Female pinworms lay eggs in the anus, causing severe itching. The eggs of the squirrels are so small that they can even be indoors in the raised dust.
You can get infected through underwear, hygiene items, food, handshakes and more. In addition, pinworms undergo the same migration as roundworms. Adults live in humans for a short time, only 1-2 months, and with proper hygiene they can be discarded in a short time. In addition to itching are observed: insomnia, distraction, irritability, allergic rash.
Hairworms are small 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. The hair follicles adhere to the intestinal walls and suck blood. The toxins they release cause headaches, poor sleep, dizziness and nausea. The lifespan of helminths is 5 years.
Trichinella are small worms, only up to 4 mm long. Humans become infected through raw pork, which contains larvae. The adults live in the gut, mate and lay eggs, and then die. Trichinella larvae are excreted, they penetrate from the intestine into the muscle tissue, where they form a capsule and can remain for years.
Helminthiasis causes the following disorders in the body:
- swollen face;
- swelling of the eyelids;
- swelling of the legs and arms;
- each rash;
- muscle pain;
- fever, fever;
- headache;
- insomnia or, conversely, drowsiness;
- reduced mobility of the knee and elbow joints;
- gastrointestinal disorders are observed.
Tapeworms in humans
- Cattle tapewormcan be up to 10 m long. Infection occurs when eating poorly cooked beef that contains helminth larvae. Hosts can become infected by trying raw minced meat with salt. Tapeworm develops in the body from the larva, which lives in the gut, attaching to the wall to hold on. The person loses weight, loses appetite, dizziness, insomnia, nausea and frequent vomiting.
- Pork tapewormis smaller, reaching only 2 m. Infection occurs after eating poorly processed pork. The symptoms are the same as in bovine tapeworm.
- The broad tapewormhas a length of 6 m to 15 m. The source of infection is raw freshwater fish. Helminthiasis presents with weakness, nausea, vomiting, drooling, abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhea. There are always bright red painful spots and even cracks on the tongue.
- Dwarf tapewormhas a length of 3-5 cm. They are infected with this helminth through dirty door handles, toilet seats, if they have worm eggs. Children get sick more often. Helminthiasis causes decreased appetite, nausea and abdominal pain, and sometimes diarrhea. In rare cases, children may have seizures similar to epileptic seizures.
- Echinococcusis one of the most dangerous helminths. Infection occurs from dogs and cats - carriers of adult individuals of the parasite. In the human body, larvae hatch from eggs, which are transported by blood flow to various organs, more often to the liver, and form echinococcal cysts there. In some cases, they even reach the size of a newborn baby's head. Cysts are removed only by surgery.
Human shoots
- Flukeparasitizes in the bile ducts and in the gallbladder itself. The size of the helminths is small - 4-13 mm. The parasite enters the body through the use of lightly salted or poorly cooked (fried) fish. First, this helminthiasis is manifested by high fever (up to 40 degrees), joint and muscle pain, disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, in rare cases, jaundice develops. Then the acute symptoms subside, there is paroxysmal pain in the pancreas. There may be complications.
- Fasciolais dangerous to health. The worms are up to 3-7 cm long and also settle in the gallbladder and bile ducts. A person becomes infected through unboiled water or by eating aquatic plants. Weakness, fever, headache and abdominal pain, urticaria appear.
In conclusion about human helminths
Some types of worms live in the human body for years because they can be difficult to manifest in any way. Often the symptoms of helminthiasis are similar to diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, so a misdiagnosis is made unless special tests are performed to identify helminths. But you urgently need to get rid of any parasites, as they not only absorb nutrients from the body, but also release toxins that are dangerous to health.