In the world 4, 5 billion registered people live from parasitic infections (infections). Moreover, the number of people infected with helminths (worms) is constantly increasing.
Causes of helminthiasis infection
Worms are not difficult to insert into your body. Here are some of the causes of infection that have been known to everyone since childhood:
- Lack of hygiene.The desire to consume fruits and vegetables without washing, not to wear gloves and not to disturb hygienic procedures while working in the garden, leads to the infection of various helminth patterns.
- Addicted to street fast food.It’s no secret that vendors of such foods don’t always come for a medical examination and often neglect basic hygiene. And their products are not stored in the best conditions. Fans of street whites and pastes are another risk group.
- Love of exotic cuisinescontains raw fish and shellfish dishes containing parasites. Thanks to fans of sushi and rolls, there is an increase in the incidence of fluke, broad tapeworm, nematode, globular worm and tapeworm.
- Hthe ability to adequately protect themselves from infection during rest.The love for "Turkish shores" more often led to the infection of exotic helminthiasis - schistosomiasis, ankylostomiasis, dracunculiasis. After walking barefoot on the overseas beach, you can bring not only pleasant impressions but also dangerous worms from your trip.
- Infection by petswho often sleep with their owner. Lovers of "kissing" their pets risk picking up the parasites.
What parasites live in the human body
If an adult had the opportunity to look into his body, he would be terrified:
- Round worms -pinworms, roundworms, whipworms, nematodes, toxocaras, trichinella. Large helminth specimens collect in huge tangles, clogging the intestinal lumen and leading to obstruction requiring surgical treatment. During surgery, doctors extract an incredible amount of parasites from the intestines of such people.
- Tapewormsappear among those who like 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 of this group is the echinococcus, whose larvae form huge cysts in the human body. When broken, the parasites are scattered throughout the body. The infection can be fatal.
- Suckers- dangerous parasites of flukes, flukes and fascioli that draw blood from the blood vessels of the liver, pancreas, intestines and bladder.
- The easiest- Leishmania, amoeba, lamblia, etc. Although these tiny parasites are only visible under a microscope, they can cause dangerous complications up to intestinal perforation and liver abscess, which are fatal.
On what basis is the presence of a "stranger" suspected: if the stomach is sick, it means that someone is living in it
Signs of the presence of helminth samples:
- Abdominal pain- the most common sign of helminth infection. It can be permanent, intermittent, affecting certain areas of the abdomen. Pain and helminthiasis in the right hypochondrium indicate damage to the liver and gallbladder by worms.
- Indigestion- diarrhea, constipation, irregular bowel movements. Sometimes in the stool, patients see climbing segments of worms or even whole parasites. Disruption of food absorption and gastrointestinal dysfunction lead to weight loss.
- Anemia.Worms suck blood out of the body and interfere with the digestibility of food. The host man does not feed himself, but the worms. 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. Sometimes blood marks are seen in the urine.
- Indolent chronic vaginitis. . . Roundworms and pinworms travel from the anus to the genitals, causing vaginal dysbiosis and provoking the development of thrush. Women are treated for itching and discharge, not realizing that they are parasites.
- Manifestations of the skin.Infection with worms poisons the body and suppresses the immune system, leading to allergies. The rash varies - from small vesicles to large areas of focus.
- Inflammation of the mucous membranesand itching of the anus due to irritation of creeping worms.
- General deterioration of health.Weak immunity, poor digestion and anemia weaken the body, which cannot resist infections. People are accompanied by persistent colds, acute respiratory infections and acute respiratory viral infections.
Why is ultrasound more effective than traditional screening for worms and other parasites?
Stool or scraping does not always reveal worms. The fact that parasites have a certain developmental cycle and do not always lay eggs. Extraintestinal helminthiasis has a whole group in which worms live outside the gut. In this case, stool analysis does not provide information.
Ultrasound of the abdominal cavity shows the changes characteristic of the presence of parasites in the liver and pancreas. Harmless, non-traumatic and reusable.
If the ultrasound physician does not detect live helminth samples and 100% signs of their presence, he suspects infection and prescribes further examination. It is useful to perform an ultrasound scan and positive tests for I / worms. The research reveals where the parasites are hiding.
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 helminths are not found, their presence may be suspected by an enlarged pancreas, compressed in the head area. The spleen is also too large.
In the liver, flukes, trematodes and flukes caused by parasitic lesions increase. It has areas of dystrophy that interfere with organ function.
The gallbladder also suffers. Patients have bile stagnation, causing pain in the right hypochondrium. Sometimes the function of the bladder is so impaired that the organ of the ultrasound is not defined at all.
The presence of parasites leads to the formation of abscesses - purulent liver lesions that are life-threatening. In 85% of cases, an abscess forms in one lobe of the liver. It affects other classes less frequently. Purulent lesions are characteristic of liver amoebiasis - the simplest infection - an amoeba that penetrates the intestinal region of the liver.
Significant changes in the liver can be seen in echinococcosis, a parasitic disease in which cavities filled with helminth orphans are formed inside the organ. Ultrasound shows rounded shapes with clear boundaries. These are cysts that contain parasites. Over time, calcium is deposited around the echinococcal foci. Such formations have a dense structure and therefore appear brighter on ultrasound than the surrounding tissues.
In prolonged infection, large, discrete cysts of the septum are formed, resembling wheel spokes or large spleen. Destruction of the bile ducts is observed. Doppler examination violates blood flow.
For lovers of Japanese cuisine. Parasites as a gift
Fans of Asian exotics have a wide variety of parasites, but the most common opisthorchiasis is the Chinese fluke infection. The source of helminth samples is unprocessed fish containing parasites.
At the onset of the disease, ultrasound in the liver and gallbladder reveals eosinophilic infiltrates - dense formations with clear boundaries. If the fight against helminths is postponed to better times, foci of dead cells appear in these organs, compared to variegated areas, and the liver ducts lose their elasticity. The situation can lead to 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 the kidney tissue, a single-chambered cyst (bubble) containing larvae is formed. Gradually increasing in size, the echinococcus cyst destroys the organ. Large parasitic cysts are soldered into the liver, spleen, and intestines.
Schistosomiasis is picked up by those who like to wander barefoot on the warm beaches of overseas countries. Parasitic larvae enter the bloodstream through the skin and are then transported with the blood to the bladder. Settling 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 - bring helminths into clear water
This test detects one or more types of parasite infections. Ascaris, toxocara, trichinella, opisthorchis flukes, echinococcus, Chinese flukes, etc. They are performed in his presence.
The principle of the test is based on the body's immune response to the presence of helminth samples. Infection with worms causes the production of protein antibodies that are detected during analysis. Because each parasite provokes the formation of a particular immunoglobulin, the analytical results show which helminths are present in the human body.
The analysis responds to all forms of parasites - eggs, larvae, adult worms. Accuracy is over 90%. The survey shows not only the presence of the infection but also its extent.
After treatment, the analysis is repeated. For some time after the death of the parasites, a positive result is observed. Immunoglobulin concentrations gradually decrease over additional months. Then the analysis will be "clean". For the research, blood is taken from a vein in an empty stomach in a volume of 3-5 ml. The analysis is performed twice.
Ultrasound and immunoglobulin testing may detect helminthiasis and begin treatment. Their use has reduced the number of misdiagnoses that lead to complications. The most important thing is to see a doctor in time if you suspect a helminthic invasion.