Every person, regardless of age, gender and status, can become a host and a habitat for parasitic microorganisms. Although the word "host" is a strong word, because worms live in the human body, absorb its nutrients and energy, poison the body and harm the organism, causing a series of negative symptoms.
According to statistics from the World Health Organization, the vast majority of people live with at least one type of parasite. And, in general, there are more than 70 species that can choose the human body as a home.
Some think that parasites live exclusively in the intestines, while everyone remembers pinworms - small and white worms. But in reality, worms can penetrate any internal organ or system, due to which they disrupt their functioning, which is dangerous not only for human health, but also for his life.
It is necessary to consider which types of helminths exist, and which are the most common? At the same time, find out what symptoms indicate their presence and what treatment will help you cope with the disease with the least harm to your health?
Types of helminths, their classification
In the world there are more than 300 species of parasites belonging to different classes and groups of microorganisms. There are only 70 species in our country, and from this number we single out 10, which are found in the vast majority of cases.
Parasitic worms, depending on the characteristics of parasitism, can be divided into two groups - intestinal and tissue.
The first group chooses the human intestine as its home, and may include pinworms, roundworms, lamblia, hookworms, whipworms, bovine, porcine and broad tapeworms.
The tissue group includes trematodes, trichinella, liver flukes, echinococci and alveococci. They can settle in any internal human organ and live there for years.
Depending on the life cycle of the parasite (as well as the source of infection), they can be divided into the following types:
- Biohelminths - eggs and larvae of this group of parasites mature in animal organisms (cow, dog, cat) or insects (mosquito, fly). That is, human infection comes directly from them. And transfer from one person to another is not possible.
- Geohelminths - the eggs and larvae of this group of parasites mature exclusively in the soil, that is, outside the human body.
- Contact parasites - infection occurs directly from a sick person to a healthy person (through handshakes, household items, bedding, etc. ).
Types of worms, depending on the class, are divided into the following types:
- Round parasites (nematodes) come in different sizes and appearances and are always of a different sex. These include pinworms and roundworms (as in the photo).
- Cestodes or flat (tape) helminths are long worms that feed on their own integument. These include beef and pork tapeworms (quite common) and Echinococcus (as in the photo).
- Trematodes or flukes - opisthorchiasis, schistosomiasis and some other types of parasitic microorganisms.
Tapeworms and flukes are always parasites, but the group of roundworms has more than 10, 000 species, and only some of them can live in the human body.
Brief characteristics of common parasites
Pinworms, which penetrate the human body, cause a disease called enterobiasis. They look like small and round worms, white or yellowish, with a maximum size of one centimeter.
Penetrating the human body, they settle in the intestines. Helminths are a contact type of parasite, i. e. they can be transmitted from a sick person to a healthy person. At night, the female crawls out of the gut and lays eggs. As a result, the main symptom of this disease is unbearable itching in the anal area.
The life cycle of pinworms varies from 4 to 6 months. It is possible to get rid of them only when the last larva dies. Parasite eggs have incredible vitality and can adapt to any adverse conditions.
The most common parasites in the human body include the following types:
- Roundworms (ascariasis).
- Toxocariasis (toxocarosis).
- Whipworm (trichocephalosis disease).
- Trichinella (trichinosis disease).
- Tapeworm or bovine tapeworm (taeniarhynchosis).
- Pig tapeworm (diseases - taeniasis, cysticercosis).
Medical statistics say that the broad tapeworm is quite common, which causes a disease such as diphyllobothriasis, as well as echinococcus (echinococcosis), cat fluke (opisthorchiasis), and lamblia - giardiasis.
All parasites in the course of their life activity have a negative effect on the human body, and the symptoms of each disease are significantly differentiated.
It is worth noting that the treatment also depends on the type of parasitic microorganism, the intensity of the helminthic infestation and the number of helminths that have penetrated the human body.
Ascaris, Toxocara
A human roundworm is a large roundworm that has a curved end (like a hook). Sizes vary from 50 cm to one meter in length and about 6 centimeters in diameter.
The length of the male is always much smaller than the length of the female. As a rule, the size of the male parasite does not exceed 25 centimeters. Ascaris larvae are relatively small in size. With the intensity of helminthic infestation, roundworms can multiply as quickly as possible, due to which balls of parasites are formed in the intestines.
Ascaris (as in the photo) belongs to geohelminths. Eggs from the soil can reach the small intestine, where over time they transform into larvae, which in a favorable environment can penetrate into the circulatory system, and from there they move through the blood to all internal organs - lungs, heart, kidneys, hemispheres of the brain, skin, eyes.
If the larvae settle in the lungs, they destroy the alveoli and enter the bronchi, and then, together with the bronchial secretion, into the oral cavity and again end up in the intestines. Thus, a secondary infection occurs. Adults can lay several thousand eggs a day and live in the human body for several years. Symptoms of ascariasis:
- General weakness, weakness.
- Increased nervousness.
- Increase in body temperature.
- Shortness of breath, non-productive cough.
- Pain in the sternum.
Treatment of ascariasis includes preliminary cleansing of the body, the doctor recommends taking laxatives and sorbents that help remove waste products from parasites. Antihelmintic drugs are then prescribed, taking into account the patient's age and weight, and the intensity of the helminthic infestation.
Treatment of roundworms is advised with drugs aimed at destroying them.
Toxocara is a round parasite (as in the photo), yellow in color and up to 10 centimeters long. Infection occurs through contact with animals, in the vast majority of cases you can get infected from cats and dogs.
The female parasite is capable of releasing up to 250, 000 eggs per day. Helminth eggs enter the human body through the oral cavity, and then end up in the intestines. Their life cycle can be compared to roundworms, they are also able to enter the circulatory system and then various internal organs.
In the human body, the helminth larva is not capable of developing into an adult, its maturation occurs exclusively in the intestines of animals. In the human body, the larvae can live up to 10 years. The symptoms of toxocarosis vary significantly, it all depends on which organ the larva settled in. Common symptoms of the disease include:
- Allergic reaction in the form of rash, itching, redness of the skin.
- Shortness of breath, difficulty breathing.
- Unproductive coughing fits.
- Dry wheezing when breathing.
The acute form of the disease has more "traditional" symptoms, which include weakness and apathy, fever, elevated body temperature, joint and muscle pain, headache and dizziness.
Treatment of toxocarosis begins with etiotropic therapy that directly affects the causes of the disease, i. e. parasite larvae. Medicines are then recommended that restore the functionality of the affected organs and systems.
Whiplash, trichinella
In appearance, the whip is a thin worm, the approximate length of which is from 3 to 5 centimeters, the diameter is like a human hair. It has a sharp end through which it is fixed in the intestinal mucosa.
The helminth can penetrate the human body from the soil, and then move to the intestines, where the larvae are formed. As a rule, this type of parasite lives in the area of the cecum and appendix. It can live in the human body for 3 to 4 years.
The peculiarity of infection with this parasite is that the disease can be asymptomatic. However, there are "classic" signs that are most often confused with respiratory diseases - cough, fever, nausea.
Whipworm reduces the body's defense power, which is why, on the background of its infection, secondary infections can occur, which significantly worsen the patient's condition. The following clinical symptoms differ:
- Pallor of the skin.
- Weakness, nausea.
- Disorders of the digestive tract.
- Pain syndrome in the abdominal area.
- There is blood in the stool.
- Increased irritability, convulsive states.
- Headaches and dizziness.
As a rule, it is quite rare to detect the parasite in the early stages of infection. However, treatment must be comprehensive. It includes narrow-spectrum anthelmintic drugs that act exclusively on whiplash, pain relievers, and antispasmodics.
Trichinella is a small worm no more than 5 millimeters long. It refers to biohelminths that circulate among predatory and domestic animals. The parasite can enter the human body along with animal flesh.
The female trichinella ends up in the human small intestine, where the reproduction process takes place and new larvae appear. These larvae enter the circulatory system and can spread throughout the human body through the bloodstream. The "favorite" local area of trichinella is the skeletal muscles, where it can live up to 5 years. The first symptoms appear in the patient 8-10 days after infection:
- Painful sensations in the abdomen.
- Regular nausea.
- Vomiting, digestive tract disorder.
- Loss of appetite.
After the larvae travel through the body, the symptoms described above become more pronounced, with additional joint and muscle pain and an allergic reaction (hives, itching, rash). If treatment is not started on time, the disease causes complications on the cardiovascular system, central nervous system and respiratory system.
Treatment includes anthelmintic drugs, as well as symptomatic therapy that suppresses allergic manifestations. Antipyretics are recommended for high temperatures. As a rule, therapy is carried out in a hospital environment.
Beef and pork tapeworm
The bull tapeworm can reach a size of thirty meters, has a small head, and has thousands of segments on its body. There are 6 hooks on the head of the parasite. Helminth larvae develop in cattle. It can enter the human body through poorly thermally processed raw meat.
During its life cycle, it remains in the small intestine, where it forms new segments. After that, they are formed and eggs are obtained from them. Each segment contains up to 100 thousand eggs.
The parasite feeds on the entire surface of its body and can live in the human body for up to 10 years. Common symptoms of the disease include:
- Systematic abdominal pain.
- Nausea.
- Loss of appetite, vomiting.
- Weight loss.
- Increased gas production.
- The urge to defecate up to 5 times a day.
Treatment includes a healthy diet that creates an unfavorable environment for the life of the parasitic microorganism, as well as anthelmintic drugs. Tablets are taken according to the regimen recommended by the doctor. After taking the medicine, the parasite dies and comes out naturally with the feces.
The pork tapeworm is similar in appearance to the beef tapeworm, but it differs in length - it cannot exceed 5 meters. Infection can occur through the consumption of raw meat, as well as from a sick person. The life cycle of a tapeworm is 20-30 years. The parasite can cause two diseases:
- Cysticercosis, when larvae enter the body.
- Taeniasis – an adult "lives" in the body.
Cysticercosis occurs against the background of sharp headache, epileptic attacks, various rashes on the skin and pathological changes in the eyeball. Symptoms caused by an adult parasite:
- Allergic reactions, difficulty breathing.
- Abdominal pain, upset stool.
- Loss of appetite, disorder of the gastrointestinal tract.
- Sleep disturbance, nervousness, irritability.
Treatment of larvae is a long process. Individual larvae are eliminated by surgery, and then anthelmintic drugs are prescribed.
To remove an adult from the human body, a narrow-spectrum antiparasitic drug is prescribed, which has a harmful effect on a certain type of parasite. After the tapeworm leaves the body, it is examined to exclude the possibility of its body parts being found in the intestines.
As medical practice shows, curing parasitic diseases is much easier than diagnosing them at an early stage. Given this circumstance, it is advisable to pay attention to the slightest pathological changes in your body and immediately consult a doctor for adequate therapy. The video in this article will tell you about the types of parasites that live in humans.