Helminths or parasitic worms behave very secretly in the human body.Symptoms of an immune response to a parasite infection can easily be confused with the flu, food poisoning, allergies, chronic fatigue syndrome, and more.And about infection with a pig tapeworm, a tapeworm reaching 3 meters in length, you may not know for your whole life - 2-3 years.Today we will talk about helminthiasis, as well as anthelmintic drugs and why you should not take them "just for prevention".
So let's introduce you first.Most helminths common in our area live in the intestines.However, some types of parasites can also settle in body tissues - muscle, lung, brain, eyeball tissue, etc.
All helminths that parasitize the human body are divided into three categories:
- Roundworms - nematodes:roundworms, pinworms, trichinella, hookworms, etc.Nematodes are the most popular parasitic diseases.According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than one billion people in the world are simultaneously infected with them (a total of more than two billion people are infected with various helminths).
- Fluke worms are trematodes.They affect the liver, biliary and urinary tracts, pancreas, intestines, lungs and blood.The most common trematodes are opisthorchosis, schistosomiasis, clonorchiasis, fascioliasis, etc., and some of them can provoke carcinogenesis - the development of tumors.
- Tapeworms are cestodes.Currently, 3,500 species of them are known, and each of them can parasitize the human body.Which cestode your body chooses depends on which country you live in.One of the main sources of infection with these parasites is fish that has not undergone complete heat treatment.Echinococcosis, dirofilariasis, taenia, taeniarhynchiasis are cestodiases that affect not only humans, but also pets.
Helminths suppress immune reactions, as a result of which the body's defenses suffer even in severe infections.They provoke allergies, digestive disorders, disrupt the functions of internal organs.The body is poisoned by metabolic products and rotting helminths, suffers from mechanical damage and suppression of the immune and nervous systems.
In addition, the presence of parasites:
- reduces the effectiveness of vaccinations;
- complicates the course of various concomitant diseases;
- negatively affects the growth and development of children and the working capacity of adults;
- provokes a change in the intestinal biocenosis and activation of the growth of "bad" microflora (pathogenic and opportunistic - for example, Candida fungi that cause candidiasis).
In general, it is really necessary to treat helminthiasis.But you have to do this wisely.
Treatment of helminthiasis.Medicines for worms
Once upon a time, mainly herbal preparations were used to combat worms - male fern, cypress wormwood, henopodia oil, etc.Now synthetic substances are used for these purposes.Therefore, some outdated drugs (herbs listed above, as well as hexylresorcinol, tetrachloromethane, etc.) are excluded from the nomenclature of medicinal anthelmintics, and some remain, but are used very limited (wormwood and tansy flowers, thymol, sulfur, pumpkin seeds, etc.).
Modern anthelmintics are divided into groups depending on their main effect on helminths of different classes (cestodes, nematodes, trematodes).Some drugs can treat several different classes of helminths.But it is important to remember that there is no concept of "the best medicine for worms" - it all depends on what kind of parasite has taken over your body.
Today, most anthelmintic drugs are produced on the basis of six main active ingredients - albendazole, mebendazole, praziquantel, pyrantel, piperazine adipate and levamisole.Let's look at their properties in more detail.
Albendazole
Albendazole preparations are effective against various parasites - both intestinal and those living in other organs.In addition, the effect of this substance depends on the time at which it is taken:
- on an empty stomach, albendazole is not absorbed, but simply passes through the digestive tract, destroying intestinal parasites;
- Together with fatty foods, albendazole is absorbed and destroys parasites outside the intestines (muscles, liver, lungs, brain, other organs).
Therefore, the use of drugs with albendazole should be clearly agreed with the doctor based on the diagnosis and the results of preliminary tests.
Mebendazole
Compared to albendazole, mebendazole is absorbed less intensively and its effect is manifested mainly in the gastrointestinal tract.However, mebendazole can also be prescribed to fight helminths living in the tissues - for example, in echinococcosis, when the echinococcal bladder is in such a place that it cannot be removed in time.
According to the recommendation of the World Health Organization (WHO), albendazole and mebendazole should be used for helminthiasis caused by the so-called soil helminths: roundworms, worms, hookworms.Both substances belong to the same group and have a similar effect - disruption of glucose absorption in the body of the helminth.If there is a deficiency of glucose, the parasite dies of starvation.
The drugs albendazole and mebendazole are not "budget", but they are valuable because they have relatively few possible side effects.
Praziquantel
Effective against trematodes (cat and lung flukes, schistosomes).It is used for the treatment of clonorchiasis, paragonimosis, opisthorchiasis, intestinal cestodiasis (taeniasis, taeniarhynchiasis), etc.Under the influence of praziquantel, the parasites disrupt the absorption of glucose by the cells of the body, which paralyzes and kills the helminths.
Pyrantel
Pyrantel is practically not absorbed in the human body and therefore has a targeted effect only on those helminths that have settled in the intestines.It immobilizes the worms that are sensitive to it, and in this immobilized state they are eliminated from the body.
Pyrantel preparations are allowed for use by children aged 6 months and older - they can receive the drug in the form of a suspension, as it is easier to dose (in the form of tablets, the drug is allowed for use only from 3 years).In general, pyrantel is well tolerated, the main thing is to take it with or immediately after food.
Piperazine adipate
This substance affects the muscle and nerve cells of nematodes and roundworms, as a result of which the parasites are paralyzed and leave the intestines naturally (along with feces).
For ascariasis, a two-day course of piperazine is usually prescribed, and for enterobiosis (sedges) - 1-3 five-day courses with weekly breaks in between.Pinworms do not respond to piperazine as quickly as roundworms - they are more resistant.Between courses, it is necessary to do enemas to gradually wash battalions of dead sedges from the intestines.
Levamisole
Levamisole paralyzes the muscles of roundworms and hookworms.IMPORTANT!Drinking alcohol is strictly prohibited within 24 hours after taking Levamisole.Otherwise, expect dizziness, rapid pulse, general weakness and other unpleasant consequences.These are all "disulfiram-like reactions";they are the basis of the action of drugs used in the treatment of alcoholism and inducing an aversion to alcohol.
In general, Levamisole differs from other anthelmintics in the most frequently developing side effects, even if it is not mixed with alcohol.These include headache, seizures, peripheral polyneuropathy, tremors, sleep disturbances and confusion.
Another characteristic side effect of Levamisole is olfactory hallucinations.Many people who have taken levamisole complain that a few days after taking it, everything around them seems to smell like bleach, smoke, "chemicals", etc.Of course, all these side effects do not occur in every case and depend on many individual factors, but our job is to warn you that such situations are quite possible.
Why You Shouldn't Take Dewormers 'Just to Be Safe'
It is strongly not recommended to take antiparasitic drugs "just for prevention", even if you have animals at home that walk outside.The role of pets in infecting humans with parasites has been greatly exaggerated.Yes, humans and dogs have a "common" parasite - toxocara, but in most cases people become infected with toxocara through street dirt, which contains particles of dog excrement and, accordingly, toxocara larvae.In addition, dogs and farm animals can be carriers of the parasite Echinococcus, which is also dangerous for humans.However, you still cannot take anthelmintics randomly.
The fact is that different drugs of this group not only act on different helminths, but also have different contraindications for use, as well as different side effects.Some of these side effects can be extremely severe because many anthelmintic drugs are toxic - because otherwise you cannot neutralize the worms: they are very hardy, like all other parasitic organisms.Sometimes, after taking certain anthelmintics, for example Dekaris, as well as in the treatment of opisthorchosis, the patient may even have to be admitted to a hospital.
It is worth exposing your body to "toxic attacks" only when the invasion is laboratory confirmed (tested for helminthiasis and a positive result was obtained).
That is why you should not follow the example of parasitophobia, although it is constantly fueled by aggressive advertising of various "miracle drugs" and Internet horror stories.Do not forget that the hygienic conditions in our country are at least far from those in Africa, where mass prophylactic deworming is fully justified.The World Health Organization (WHO) has defined a list of countries in which continuous helminth control is recommended.
Prevention of helminthiasis
Of course, prevention of helminth infection should be carried out.But this is not about drug prevention.To minimize the risk of catching "uninvited guests", just try to adhere to two basic rules:
- Wash your hands.The most common nematode infections in our area (toxocarosis, ascariasis, enterobiosis) and echinococcosis are not without reason called diseases of dirty hands.Therefore, as trivial as it sounds, wash your hands often and thoroughly.Moreover, now, against the background of the coronavirus pandemic, this basic rule of hygiene has taken on even greater importance.
- Maintain food hygiene.Parasite eggs can enter the body from unwashed fruits, vegetables and herbs - so rinse them well under running water.Meat and fish that have not undergone sufficient heat treatment also pose an increased risk.Parasite larvae are particularly prevalent in carp and can also stalk you in home-salted roe, especially in pike, where broadhead tapeworm larvae like to settle.Raw ground beef and rare steaks may contain beef or pork tapeworm larvae.
In addition to normal heat treatment, there is another reliable way to disinfect meat and fish - freezing them.A home freezer with a temperature of -20°C is suitable for this.Keep the fish or meat there for at least two days - and you can be sure: the larvae of most parasites cannot withstand such a "cold test".
As you can see, the complete prevention of helminthiasis is mostly a way of life, and not the regular use of toxic drugs.So don't get carried away with drugs without special reasons, watch your food and personal hygiene and get yourself checked periodically.