Overview
Diseases caused by parasites in the human intestinal tract are collectively called intestinal parasitic diseases. Commonly, there are protozoa and helminths (including roundworms, hookworms, pinworms, tapeworms, whipworms, amoebas, giardia, trichomonads, etc.). There are many types of intestinal parasites, and the process of parasitization in the human body is complex, causing lesions that are not limited to the intestinal tract. Clinical signs and symptoms vary depending on the type and location of the infected parasite and the immune status of the host.
Etiology
Most intestinal parasitic infections are related to local hygiene conditions, living habits, health awareness, economic level and family aggregation. Natural temperature, rainfall, and the production and living habits of the people are epidemiologically important factors.
Symptoms
Different intestinal parasites can cause different symptoms such as:
1. Whipworm
It is a common parasite of human intestinal tract. Mild infections are mostly asymptomatic. In severe infections, patients may have paroxysmal pain and pressure in the lower abdomen, chronic diarrhea, and blood or occult blood in the stool. Severe infected children may have prolapse, anemia, malnutrition and weight loss.
2. Amebic dysentery
A common intestinal protozoan disease. Most of the infected people are asymptomatic carriers of the pathogen, and a few of them may have typical clinical symptoms, manifested by abdominal cramps, pus and blood mucus stools, up to dozens of times a day. It may be accompanied by abdominal distension, emaciation and anemia. Amoebic dysentery can also be complicated by intestinal bleeding, intestinal perforation and abscesses in the liver, lung, brain, genitourinary tract and adjacent skin.
3. Giardia
Giardiasis is a common intestinal protozoan disease. Most infected people are asymptomatic carriers of the pathogen. Typical symptoms in the acute stage are violent watery diarrhea with foul odor, accompanied by abdominal distension, foul farts and belching, nausea, anorexia, vomiting, fatigue and colic in the middle and upper abdomen. If left untreated, it tends to develop into a chronic condition, manifested by intermittent loose, yellow foamy stools, also with a foul odor, recurrent episodes, and the duration of the disease can be up to several years. Children may suffer from anemia and malnutrition due to diarrhea. When the worm parasites in the biliary system, can cause cholecystitis or cholangitis.
4. Ascariasis
Ascariasis is a common parasitic disease of the human intestinal tract. Patients do not have any symptoms, but children, weak or malnourished people have more chances of symptoms. Recurrent pain around the umbilicus is more common. It is sometimes accompanied by loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and constipation. Severe infections, especially in children, can cause malnutrition, mental and developmental disorders. Mental restlessness, irritability, teeth grinding, itching and convulsions may also occur. Some patients may have allergic reactions, such as angioneurotic edema, intractable urticaria and so on. In addition to the above symptoms, sometimes can cause serious complications, such as biliary ascariasis, intestinal obstruction, intestinal perforation and peritonitis.
5. Hookworm disease
It is a common and serious intestinal parasitic disease. At the initial stage of infection, there is a strange itching and burning sensation at the infected place, followed by the appearance of small bleeding spots, papules or small herpes. It can disappear within a few days. Scratching can be followed by bacterial infection and localized lymph node enlargement. Three to five days after infection, patients often have cough, throat itching, mute, etc., the heaviest have severe dry cough and asthma and other respiratory symptoms, most of which last for a few days to disappear on their own, and the longest can be up to 1 to 2 months. In the early stage of the disease, there is still epigastric discomfort, hidden pain, etc., and in the late stage of anemia, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhea, intractable constipation or fecal occult blood and other digestive symptoms. Some patients like to eat raw rice, raw beans, and even dirt, shredded paper, etc., usually called “heterophilia”. Anemia is the main symptom of hookworm disease, severe anemia patients with yellowish skin, pale mucous membranes, and can lead to dizziness, fatigue, palpitations, edema and other symptoms of cardiac insufficiency. Children with severe disease can cause developmental disorders.
6. Pork tapeworm and cysticercosis
Patients generally have no obvious symptoms, and a few have hidden abdominal pain, dyspepsia, diarrhea, weight loss and so on. White flakes (nodules) found in the feces are the most common reason for seeking medical attention. Cysticercosis occurs when a person accidentally eats the eggs of the pork tapeworm, which develop into larvae (cysticerci) in the body. Cysticerci are mainly parasitic in tissues such as under the skin, in the muscles, in the eyes and in the brain. They are much more harmful to people than tapeworms. The invasion of subcutaneous or muscle cysticercus form nodules, can be self-conscious muscle pain and weakness, swelling; parasitized in the brain can cause seizures, headache, dizziness, memory loss, limb numbness, hearing impairment, mental disorders, etc., parasitized in the eye can cause vision loss or even blindness.
7. Pinworms
Pinworms, thread-like, milky white, is parasitic in the intestinal tract of small nematodes, can cause pinworm disease. When a person sleeps, the female worm moves to the outside of the anus a large number of ovulation, the excluded eggs are adhered to the skin outside the perianal area, mainly caused by itching of the skin in the anus and perineum, as well as secondary inflammation caused by this. In addition, patients often have irritability, insomnia, loss of appetite, night terrors and other manifestations. If the female worm enters the vagina, uterus, fallopian tube, urethra or abdominal and pelvic cavity after laying eggs outside the anus, it can cause vaginitis, endometritis, salpingitis and other inflammations.
Examination
Examination of parasite eggs and protozoa in feces is a common method and important basis for the diagnosis of intestinal parasitic diseases, which can not only observe the infection of parasites and assess the efficacy of antiparasitic drugs, but also an important means of epidemiological investigation of these parasitic diseases.
Diagnosis
Diagnosis can be made on the basis of clinical manifestations and clinicopathologic tests, and fecal worm egg examination can be performed, and if eggs are found, the diagnosis can be clarified.
Questions you may be concerned about
What tests are needed for intestinal parasites
Intestinal parasites can be determined by symptoms, pathogenetic examination and routine stool examination.
1. Through the symptoms of abdominal pain, diarrhea, blood in the stool and other symptoms can be considered to be infected with whipworms; if there is a poor quality of sleep, poor appetite, it may be pinworms, children if there is teeth grinding, vomiting, diarrhea, may be infected with roundworms.
2. Pathogenetic examination is generally through the secretion to find worms; or through biopsy puncture to determine whether there are parasites.
3. Routine fecal examination can be done to screen the stool for eggs, and colonoscopy can be done to determine the specific conditions in the colorectum.
If you have intestinal parasites, you should pay attention to personal hygiene and dietary habits, find symptoms and consult the doctor in time to find out the cause of the disease, so as to avoid delays in the treatment of the disease.
Treatment
It is recommended to investigate the source of the disease in regular hospitals. Since the source of the disease is different, corresponding anthelmintic drugs should be used for treatment. It should be noted that pregnant women should not take deworming drugs. Young children should be treated according to the doctor’s instructions.
Prevention
1. Do not drink cold water, eat raw food and unclean fruits and vegetables;
2. Wash hands and cut nails before and after meals;
3. Cook food thoroughly, especially when barbecuing or eating hot pot;
4. educate children to change the habit of eating fingers and biting nails;
5. it is best to give children dead-crotch underwear to wear to bed to prevent them from scratching their anus;
6. washing toys regularly or scrubbing them with 0.05% iodine solution;
7. strengthen the management of water sources to avoid contamination of water sources;
8. not urinating and defecating anywhere, strengthening harmless treatment of faeces, and not using fresh faeces for fertilizer;
9. harmless treatment of manure should be promoted in rural areas, and shoes must be worn when working in the fields;
10. domestic animal management should be strengthened, and chickens, ducks and geese should not be kept in cities;
11. Child-care institutions and schools should regularly inspect feces for early detection of children with parasitic worms so that they can be thoroughly dewormed.