There are 4. 5 billion people worldwide suffering from parasitic infections (infestations). In addition, the number of people infected with helminths (worms) is constantly growing.
Causes of helminthiasis infection
It is not difficult to place worms in your body. Here are just a few of the common causes of childhood infections:
- Lack of hygiene.The desire to eat unwashed fruits and vegetables, not to wear gloves when working in the garden, and not to worry about hygiene procedures can lead to various helminth infections.
- It depends on the fast food on the street.It is no secret that those who sell such food do not always come for medical examinations and often neglect basic hygiene. And the products are not stored in the best conditions. Fans of street whites and pasties are another risk group.
- Love exotic cuisinesshellfish containing raw fish and parasites. For fans of sushi and rolls, fluke, wide lenteworm, nematode, roundworm and tapeworm are associated with increased incidence.
- Hability to properly protect themselves from infection at rest.The love for the "Turkish coast" has led to more frequent infections with exotic helminthiasis - schistosomiasis, hookworm, draconiculiasis. After a barefoot walk on the beach abroad, you can bring not only pleasant impressions from your trip, but also dangerous worms.
- Infection from petsoften sleeping with their owners. Those who like to "kiss" a pet are at risk of accumulating parasites.
What parasites live in the human body
If he had the opportunity to look at the body of an adult, he would be horrified:
- Roundworms -pinworms, roundworms, whipworms, nematodes, toxocaras, trichinella. Large helminths accumulate in giant tangles, clog the intestinal lumen and cause obstruction that requires surgical treatment. During surgery, doctors remove incredible parasites from the intestines of such people.
- Black wormsAppears among those who want to taste meat with blood and raw fish. They cause digestive problems, anemia, allergies. Children have seizures similar to epileptic seizures. The most dangerous helminth larvae of this group are echinococci, which form giant cysts in the human body. When parasites break, they spread all over the body. The infection can be fatal.
- Suckers- Flukes, flukes and fascioli are dangerous parasites that suck blood from the vessels of the liver, pancreas, intestines and bladder.
- The simplest- Leishmania, amoeba, lamblia, etc. Although these small parasites can only be seen under a microscope, they can cause dangerous complications, including fatal intestinal perforation and liver abscesses.
On what grounds can we doubt the existence of "strangers": if the stomach is sick, then someone lives there
Signs of helminths:
- Stomach pain- The most common sign of helminth infection. It can be permanent, periodic, affecting certain areas of the abdomen. Pain in the right hypochondrium with helminthiasis indicates that the liver and gallbladder have been damaged by worms.
- Indigestion- diarrhea, constipation, irregular bowel movements. Sometimes patients see creeping segments or even entire parasites in the stool. Impaired digestion and dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract lead to weight loss.
- Anemia.Worms absorb blood from the body and interfere with the digestion of food. The host man feeds the worms, not himself. Patients complain of weakness, fatigue, loss of strength, dizziness.
- Damage to the urinary tract,caused by parasites living in the kidneys and bladder. Patients complain of back pain and swelling. Occasionally there are traces of blood in the urine.
- Neglected chronic vaginitis. . . Roundworms and pinworms crawl from the anus into the genital tract, causing vaginal dysbiosis and the development of thrush. Women are treated for itching and discharge without knowing it is a parasite.
- Skin manifestations.Infection with worms poisons the body and suppresses the immune system, causing allergies. Rash is different - from small vesicles to large focal areas.
- Inflammation of the mucosaand itching in the anus, which irritates creeping worms.
- General deterioration of health.Weak immunity, poor digestion and anemia weaken the body, which is unable to fight infections. A person is followed by persistent colds, acute respiratory infections and acute respiratory viral infections.
Why ultrasound is more effective than traditional tests for worms and other parasites
Stools or crumbs do not always detect worms. The fact is that parasites have a certain period of development and do not always lay eggs. There is a whole group of helminthiases outside the gut where worms live outside the gut. In this case, the stool analysis will not give any information.
Ultrasound examination of the abdominal cavity shows characteristic changes for the presence of parasites in the liver and pancreas. Harmless, non-traumatic and can be used repeatedly.
If the ultrasound doctor does not detect live helminths and 100% signs of their presence, he will suspect an infection and schedule an additional examination. It is useful to undergo an ultrasound examination and positive tests for I / worms. The study will reveal where the parasites are hiding.
Signs of helminthiasis determined by ultrasound examination of the abdominal cavity - semi-living organs and live worms
When examining the gastrointestinal tract on modern 3D and 4D devices, doctors often see live parasites in the intestines. If the helminth is not found, it may be suspected to be present by a compressed, enlarged pancreas in the head area. The spleen is also very large.
The liver with parasitic lesions with flukes, trematodes and flukes grows. There are areas of dystrophy that interfere with the functioning of the body.
The gallbladder also suffers. Patients have bile stasis that causes pain in the right hypochondrium. Sometimes the bladder malfunctions to such an extent that the organ is not identified at all on ultrasound.
The presence of parasites leads to the formation of abscesses - life-threatening purulent liver lesions. In 85% of cases, abscesses form in one lobe of the liver. Other departments are less affected. Purulent lesions are characteristic of hepatic amoebiasis - the simplest infection - an amoeba that penetrates the liver from the intestines.
Significant changes in the liver are observed in echinococcosis, a parasitic disease in which cavities filled with helminth larvae form inside the body. Ultrasound shows round formations with clear boundaries. These are cysts that contain parasites. Over time, calcium accumulates around echinococcal foci. Such formations have a dense structure, so they look lighter on ultrasound than the surrounding tissues.
With long-term infection, large cysts form with septa resembling round teeth or large honeycombs. Destruction of bile ducts is observed. Doppler examination reveals impaired blood flow.
For lovers of Japanese cuisine. Parasites are a gift
Fans of Asian exoticism have a variety of parasites, but the most common is opisthorchiasis, a Chinese fluke infection. The source of helminths is unprocessed fish that contains parasites.
At the beginning of the disease, ultrasound examination of the liver and gallbladder reveals eosinophilic infiltrates - dense formations with clear boundaries. If the fight against helminths is delayed until a better time, the centers of dead cells resembling colored areas will appear in these organs, and the hepatic ducts will lose their elasticity. The condition can result in the development of liver failure.
If the urinary tract is a victim of parasites
Echinococcus affects not only the liver but also the kidneys. When the parasite enters the kidney tissue, a single-chambered cyst (bubble) with larvae is formed. Echinococcal cysts, which gradually increase in size, destroy the body. Large parasitic cysts are soldered to the liver, spleen and intestines.
Schistosomiasis is collected by those who like to walk barefoot on the hot beaches of foreign countries. The parasitic larvae enter the bloodstream through the skin and are then transported with the blood to the bladder. Once there, they cause the appearance of seals - infiltrates - that appear in response to irritation of the walls of the bladder. When the infection spreads, the kidneys are affected.
Enzyme immunoassay - bring helminths to clean water
This test detects infection with one or more types of parasites. Ascaris, toxocara, trichinella, opisthorchis flukes, echinococci, Chinese flukes, etc.
The principle of the test is based on the body's immune response to the presence of helminths. Infection with worms causes the production of protein antibodies detected during analysis. Since each parasite stimulates the formation of a specific immunoglobulin, the results of the analysis show which helminths are present in the human body.
The analysis reacts to all forms of parasites - eggs, larvae, adult worms. Accuracy is more than 90%. The questionnaire shows not only the presence of infection, but also the degree.
The analysis is repeated after treatment. A positive result can be observed for some time after the death of the parasites. The concentration of immunoglobulins will gradually decrease over several months. Then the analysis will be "clean". For the study, blood is taken from a vein on an empty stomach in a volume of 3-5 ml. The analysis is performed twice.
A study for ultrasound and immunoglobulins can detect helminthiasis and begin treatment. Their use has reduced the number of misdiagnosis complications. The main thing is to consult a doctor in time if you suspect a helminthic infestation.