Parasite 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. Thus, the patient may think that he is overworked, suffers from gastritis or poisoning, experiences an exacerbation of allergies or arthritis.
How to suspect the appearance of worms
Signs of helminths in the body depend on the type and location of the parasite. Some symptoms appear shortly 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:
- Increase in body temperature. Fever can be inexpressible - up to 37. 5 ° C, short-term. Episodes of elevated 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 feces - mucus, blood. Most often there are episodes of diarrhea, but with the blockage of the intestinal lumen by parasites, the development of obstruction is also possible.
- Itching in the anus is the first sign and characteristic symptom of pinworms. It occurs at night, causing a person to scratch their anus.
- Helminths cause allergic reactions of the skin or respiratory type due to the circulation of their decomposition products, toxins, in the body. So, a person complains of an 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 hair, nails, a characteristic "jam" in the corners of the mouth, dry skin. Lack of iron in the body provokes the development of anemia, pallor 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 is disturbed by headaches, irritability, impaired performance, intermittent sleep and emotional instability.
- Worms migrating through the respiratory system (roundworms) cause a person to experience bouts of dry cough. With the movement of parasites in the muscles, the development of intoxication, sick people complain of pain, pain in muscles and joints.
On 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 2-3 weeks after contact with the parasite, and with migrating worms - after months, years.
The combination of different symptoms does not clearly indicate a specific disease, but is a reason to worry about your health and consult a doctor. If a sick person is engaged in self-diagnosis, looking for information on how to understand that you have worms, he risks wasting time and getting 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 internal organs. Parasitic worms in humans can lead to conditions so serious that they require urgent surgery and, in some cases, removal of part of the organ:
- acute intestinal obstruction;
- violation of the integrity of the intestine with the development of peritonitis;
- appendicitis;
- blockage of the bile ducts;
- eye damage.
Important!
Among the late consequences of the invasion, leading to a deterioration of the condition, the death of the patient, include cirrhosis and cancer of the liver, pneumonia, pleurisy, sclerosis of the lung tissue, myocarditis, meningitis, auditory and visual disorders, episyndrome.
How does worm infestation occur?
To solve the problem of helminth prevention, it is necessary to have information about the origin of the parasites. The most common infection mechanisms are: food, contact-household, percutaneous, transmissible (associated with blood-sucking insects).
Here are the most typical situations in which worms appear in the body:
- The use of vegetables, fruits, berries or green vegetables contaminated with eggs of the parasite.
- Eating undercooked meat, fish with helminth larvae. Feed game that has not passed veterinary control. Thus, Trichinella can withstand even prolonged meat stew and retain its viability.
- Violation of hygiene rules: formal attitude of washing hands after returning from the street, contact with pets or street animals.
- Swimming in tanks containing worm larvae.
- Contact with soil containing pest larvae when working in the garden.
- Work in conditions where there is an increased risk of infection with helminths: in children's groups, feeding, breeding, 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 are based on parasitological data. Some helminths occupy various sections of the intestine and multiply there. Humans can be the main hosts of the parasite. So-called human worms go through the stage of sexual reproduction in the body and 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. Parasites have spread to internal organs, causing damage to them. Thus, worms in the human body can be detected:
- under the skin;
- in the liver;
- in the bladder;
- In the eyes ;
- in the muscles;
- in the 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 follow 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, rash, cough with sputum, inflammatory and allergic changes in the blood count are the basis of parasite control in a person. Infectious 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:
- analysis of feces for eggs of the parasite;
- scraping or smearing for enterobiasis;
- immunological tests to detect antibodies against helminths;
- PCR analyzes for worm DNA fragments;
- detection of the worm in the duodenal contents, tissue biopsy samples.
These methods will help determine the type of parasite and choose an effective drug. If the internal organs are damaged, the following will help diagnose helminth:
- pulmonary radiography;
- Ultrasound of liver, heart, pancreas;
- cystoscopy;
- MRI of the brain.
If necessary, the infectious disease specialist will refer a neurologist, ophthalmologist, cardiologist, urologist for consultations.
On a note!
You should not try to recognize helminths on your own, resort to "one-time 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 comprehensive recommendations on the treatment of the disease, the diet and the diet. If necessary, the doctor will offer hospitalization in the hospital. There is no single "magic" medicine for worms, symptoms and treatment of helminths in an adult may vary.
You must know the basic principles of parasitotherapy:
- To combat worms, drugs are used. The choice of the treatment regimen (dosage, duration of treatment, frequency of administration) depends on the type of helminths, the condition of the patient's body.
- In the event of serious illness, assistance is provided in a hospital setting.
- You should not independently reduce the dosage, reduce the duration of treatment with tablets or a suspension of worms.
- Some drugs require a diet, a refusal to drink alcohol.
- There are no "magic" remedies that allow you to quickly get rid of helminths in 1 day. For the treatment of some worms in humans, short courses are actually used, but it is impossible to destroy all 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.
- Antiallergics, hepatoprotectors, enterosorbents, immunomodulators are prescribed as adjuvant therapy. On their own, they do not help eliminate worms from a person, but improve the general well-being of a person, removing the unpleasant symptoms of the disease and the 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 fund
Treatment with drugs from the group of anthelmintic drugs helps to destroy, expel parasites from the body. Pharmaceutical drugs have different points of application:
- disrupt nutrient uptake by parasites;
- disturb the metabolism of worms;
- cause paralysis of the helminth musculature.
On 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, reinfection with parasites is possible.
Also, an infectious disease specialist can prescribe herbal remedies that help poison and drive out worms in humans. The doctor will recommend certain herbs, based on information about the condition of the body and the type of parasites. To cure the patient, apply: pumpkin seeds, tansy and centaury.
Folk remedies for worms
Many patients refuse traditional therapeutic methods, hoping for the help of traditional medicine. Infectious warn that attempts to get rid of worms at home with questionable solutions, infusions can lead to increased intoxication, allergic reactions. If you miss the time, the disease will progress, a fatal outcome is possible.
To drive helminths out of the body, the following home remedies are widely used:
- onion decoction;
- pomegranate peel;
- enemas and ingestion of pumpkin seeds;
- sour vegetable and berry juices without sugar;
- garlic with milk;
- soda enemas;
- tincture of wormwood.
Treatment reviews
Before starting treatment, patients consider various options for dealing with parasites, trying to figure out how to poison helminths correctly. In their reviews, people who have had a helminthic invasion describe traditional drug therapy as a fairly effective method. It is extremely rare to get rid of helminths with folk remedies.
- "I began to worry about itching in the anus. Went to the therapist, received the direction on scratching. It was very unpleasant that pinworms were found in the scratching. I readhow dangerous helminths are and I decided not to poison myself with self-medication. On the advice of the doctor, she drank a dewormer - 1 tablet 1 time per week. The course lasted 2 weeks, iI immediately felt relief, the itching was gone. I don't think it was such a terrible infection, but the medication worked 'perfectly well'.
- "I caught worms after eating fish at a party. Soon the diarrhea started. I lost weight, my skin became dry and itchy. I studied in detail the information about thehow to treat parasites and how to restore the body later I started to take anthelmintic medicine myself. I was embarrassed to go to the doctor. The medicine did not help. I tried tofight worms with folk methods: I cleansed the liver with bitterness, drank garlic milk and put an enema. But it did not improve. I had to turn to an infectious disease specialist, I amtreated with benzimidazole class de-worming drug As I "matured" to go to the doctor, I lost 4 pounds, became pale, nervous.
Prevention
Knowing how worms appear in the body, anyone can protect themselves and loved ones from infection. Prevention includes:
- Wash hands with soap after contact with animals, return home.
- Regular deworming of pets.
- Quick change of bed linen.
- Regular wet cleaning, airing, carpet and upholstery cleaning.
- 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. You should pay attention to symptoms such as: diarrhea, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, weight loss, rash, cough, fever and consult a specialist immediately. After treatment, precautions should be taken to avoid reinfection.