There are 4. 5 billion registered people in the world suffering from parasitic infections (infestations). In addition, the number of people infected with helminths (worms) is constantly increasing.
Causes of helminthiasis infection
It is not difficult to get worms into your body. These are just some of the causes of infection, familiar to everyone since childhood:
- Lack of hygiene.The desire to eat unwashed fruits and vegetables, not to wear gloves while working in the garden, and not to worry about hygiene procedures, leads to infection with a variety of helminths.
- Addicted to fast street food.It is no secret that sellers of this type of food do not always go for a medical examination and often neglect basic hygiene. And their products are not stored in the best conditions. Fans of street whites and empanadas are another risk group.
- Love for exotic cuisinescontaining raw fish and seafood dishes containing parasites. It is for fans of sushi and rolls that the increased incidence of flukes, broad tapeworms, roundworms, roundworms, and beltworms is due.
- Hthe ability to adequately protect yourself from infection during rest.The love for the "Turkish shores" has led to more frequent cases of infection by exotic helminthiases: schistosomiasis, hookworm, guinea pig. After walking barefoot on a beach abroad, you can bring from your trip not only pleasant impressions, but also dangerous worms.
- Pet infectionwho usually sleep with their owners. Lovers of "kissing" a pet run the risk of contracting parasites.
What parasites live in the human body?
If an adult had the opportunity to look inside her body, he would be horrified:
- Round worms -pinworms, roundworms, whipworms, nematodes, toxocaras, trichinella. Large helminths gather in large tangles, obstructing the intestinal lumen and causing an obstruction that requires surgical treatment. During the operation, doctors remove an incredible amount of parasites from the intestines of these people.
- You hadThey appear among those who like to taste meats with blood and raw fish. They cause digestive problems, anemia, allergies. Children have seizures similar to epileptic seizures. The most dangerous helminth of this group is the echinococcus, the larvae of which form huge cysts in the human body. When they break open, the parasites spread throughout the body. The infection can be fatal.
- Pacifiers- 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 tiny parasites are only visible under the microscope, they can cause dangerous complications up to intestinal perforation and liver abscesses, which are fatal.
Why can the presence of "strangers" be suspected: if a stomach is sick, does it mean that someone lives in it?
Signs of the presence of helminths:
- Stomach ache- the most common sign of helminth infection. It can be constant, periodic, affecting certain areas of the abdomen. Pain in the right upper quadrant with helminthiasis indicates damage to the liver and gallbladder from worms.
- Indigestion- diarrhea, constipation, irregular stools. Sometimes in the stool, patients see crawling worm segments or even whole parasites. Poor absorption of food and dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract lead to weight loss.
- Anemia.Worms suck blood from the body and interfere with the digestibility of food. The host does not feed itself, but the worms. Patients complain of weakness, fatigue, loss of strength, dizziness.
- Damage to the urinary tract,caused by parasites that live in the kidneys and bladder. Patients complain of back pain and swelling. Sometimes, traces of blood are seen in the urine.
- Indolent chronic vaginitis. . . Roundworms and pinworms crawl from the anus into the genital tract, causing vaginal dysbiosis and leading to the development of thrush. Women are treated for itching and discharge, not realizing that they are parasites.
- Cutaneous manifestations.Worm infection poisons the body and suppresses the immune system, leading to allergies. The eruptions are different, from small vesicles to large focal areas.
- Inflammation of the mucosa.and itchy anus caused by irritation from crawling worms.
- General deterioration of health.Weak immunity, poor digestion, and anemia weaken the body, which cannot resist infection. A person suffers from constant colds, acute respiratory infections, and acute respiratory viral infections.
Why Ultrasound Is More Effective Than Traditional Tests At Detecting Worms And Other Parasites
Feces or scrapes do not always reveal worms. The point is that parasites have a certain development cycle and do not always lay eggs. There is a whole group of extraintestinal helminthiases, in which the worms live outside the intestine. In this case, the stool analysis will not provide any information.
Ultrasound of the abdominal cavity shows changes characteristic of the presence of parasites in the liver, pancreas. It is harmless, non-traumatic, and can be used many times.
If the ultrasound doctor does not detect live helminths and 100% signs of their presence, he will suspect an infection and prescribe an additional examination. It is useful to have an ultrasound and positive tests for worms I /. The investigation will reveal where the parasites lurk.
Signs of helminthiasis, determined by ultrasound 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 no helminths are found, their presence may be suspected by an enlarged, compacted pancreas in the head area. The spleen is also too large.
The liver with parasitic trematode, trematode and trematode lesions is enlarged. Above it are areas of dystrophy that impede the functioning of the organ.
The gallbladder also suffers. In patients, there is a stagnation of bile, which causes pain in the right hypochondrium. Sometimes the function of the bladder is so impaired that the organ on ultrasound is not determined at all.
The presence of parasites leads to the formation of abscesses, purulent liver lesions that are life-threatening. In 85% of cases, abscesses form in a lobe of the liver. Other departments are affected less frequently. Purulent lesions are characteristic of hepatic amebiasis, infection with the simplest, an amoeba that penetrates the liver region from the intestines.
Significant changes in the liver are seen in echinococcosis, a parasitic disease in which cavities filled with helminth larvae form within the organ. On ultrasound, rounded formations with clear boundaries are seen. These are cysts with parasites inside. Over time, calcium is deposited around the echinococcal foci. Such formations have a dense structure, therefore, on ultrasound, they look lighter than the surrounding tissues.
With prolonged infection, large cysts with septa form, resembling wheel spokes or large combs. Destruction of the bile ducts is observed. With a Doppler examination, there is a violation of blood flow.
For lovers of Japanese cuisine. Parasites as a gift
Fans of Asian exoticism have a wide variety of parasites, but the most common opisthorchiasis is infection from the Chinese fluke. The source of helminths is raw fish that contain parasites.
Early in the disease, ultrasound of the liver and gallbladder reveals eosinophilic infiltrates, dense formations with clear boundaries. If the fight against helminths is postponed until better times, foci of dead cells will appear in these organs, with the appearance of mottled areas, and the hepatic ducts will lose elasticity. The situation can result in the development of liver failure.
If the urinary tract becomes a victim of parasites.
Echinococcus affects not only the liver, but also the kidneys. When the parasite enters kidney tissue, it forms a single-chamber cyst (bubble) that contains larvae. Gradually increasing in size, the echinococcal cyst destroys the organ. Large parasitic cysts weld to the liver, spleen, and intestines.
Schistosomiasis is contracted by those who like to walk barefoot on the warm beaches of overseas countries. The larvae of the parasite enter the bloodstream through the skin and are then transported with the blood to the bladder. Having settled there, they cause the appearance of seals, infiltrates that appear in response to irritation of the bladder walls. When the infection spreads, the kidneys are affected.
Enzyme immunoassay: we bring helminths to drinking water
This test detects infection with one or more types of parasites. It is carried out by the presence of 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. Worm infection causes the production of protein antibodies, which are detected during the analysis. Since each parasite causes the formation of a certain immunoglobulin, the results of the analysis show which helminths are found in the human body.
The analysis reacts to all forms of parasites: eggs, larvae, adult worms. Accuracy is greater than 90%. The survey shows not only the presence of infection, but also its degree.
After treatment, the analysis is repeated. A positive result can be observed for some time after the death of the parasites. The immunoglobulin level will gradually decrease over several more months. Then the analysis will be "clean". For research, blood is drawn from a vein on an empty stomach in a volume of 3-5 ml. The analysis is carried out twice.
Ultrasound and an immunoglobulin study can detect helminthiasis and begin treatment. Thanks to its use, the number of cases of misdiagnosis leading to complications has decreased. The main thing is to consult a doctor in time if you suspect a helminthic invasion.