Worms: treatment, symptoms, diagnosis and prevention

Many organisms co-exist with humans on the planet, some of which can parasitize humans and animals. In humans, they are called by one common word - worms. The treatment of such a problem, the signs of parasitic infection, and methods of prevention are discussed below.

Caution, parasites!

Infected with helminth samples, and this is the correct name for worms and similar organisms that can parasitize human, animal, or fish organisms in a variety of ways. They cause significant damage to health, although often the infected person himself cannot imagine that the problems that have arisen are the result of the vital activity of the parasite. What worms are there in humans? The answer to this question will help you determine the type of individuals who are causing the health disorder, so you can choose the right treatment. After all, why are worms dangerous? The release of waste products into the body's system, the absorption of nutrients, the lack of which affects the state of health. One of the main considerations in the treatment of helminthiasis should be strict adherence to the rules of personal hygiene.

What is the danger?

Analysis such as worm egg feces is a mandatory element in a medical examination to determine general health. From the moment of admission to kindergarten until the receipt of vouchers for sanatorium treatment, one must necessarily undergo such a procedure. The presence of parasites in the body is the reason for medical withdrawal in certain situations. Many people prefer to take pills in advance to prevent worms to be sure of getting the negative test results they need. But why are helminths so dangerous that the procedure for determining their presence in the body is one of the most common in medical examinations of people of different ages and professions?

It is adversely affected by parasites in the human body, which manifests itself in various ways. So immunity suffers from their vital activity - there is an increased tendency to catch colds, viral and bacterial infections. The body begins to lack useful substances - trace elements and vitamins, which affects all processes in the systems, organs and tissues, causing various diseases and pathologies. Because worms perform all vital processes within the human body, the toxins they release have a toxic effect and poisoning occurs. This in turn contributes to the development of asthma, allergies, liver and kidney disease. Worms negatively affect the work of all parts of the gastrointestinal tract. They also affect the functioning of the central nervous system, causing insomnia, irritability, excessive irritability, aggression, which can lead to depression. The negative consequences follow those who suffer from problems like worms. It must be handled professionally, taking into account many aspects, from the type of helminth to the general state of human health.

Such different parasites

Before deciding on a treatment method, you need to find out what worms a person has. Scientists have discovered several varieties. They fall into two major groups:

  • nematode-nematodes (Nematoda);
  • Flatworms.

Both groups of parasites are very extensive, as there are only about 40 species of flukes belonging to the flatworms of trematodes that can parasitize and cause disease in the human body. In humans, diseases caused by the vital activity of worms are distributed as follows:

  • hookworm;
  • enterobiasis;
  • trichocephalosis.

What measures should be taken to prevent infection? Why are worms dangerous? Poisoning the human or animal body with the products of their vital activity and damaging the tissues and organs in which they settle.

Scientists classify parasites that can perform vital activities in the human body according to their habitat:

  • Luminal - This type includes worms that settle in different parts of the intestine. There are more than a hundred of them, the most common being pinworm, roundworm, hookworm, beef tapeworm, whipworm.
  • Clothing. In addition to the intestines, they live in other organs and tissues, affecting the heart, lungs, liver, lymphatic system and brain.

Therefore, analysis of the feces of worm eggs may not always provide an accurate answer to the question of the possibility of human invasion.

Need to guard?

Symptoms of a worm infection often do not immediately give rise to such a problem. General weakness and malaise, weight loss, skin and hair deterioration are signs not only of helminthiasis but also of many other health problems. But itching of the anus, especially at night, the appearance of white worm-like inclusions in the stool that prove to be pinworm-like helminths on closer examination should be an incentive to choose a doctor and examine helminthiasis for problem identification and quality treatment. Unfortunately, such obvious signs only appear when the infection has spread. The very first symptoms often go unnoticed, the parasites are assimilated, in some cases spread to many organs, and not just the intestines. In what cases is it necessary to consult a doctor to detect certain tests that may detect helminthiasis? Professionals categorize them by display area:

  • Gastrointestinal disorders. In the vast majority of cases, the parasites are present in the human gut, causing this system to malfunction: stool disorders - constipation is replaced by diarrhea, heartburn and bloating increase, painful sensations occur in the abdomen, especially in the right hypochondria and around the navel.
  • Neurological diseases. Poisoning of parasites by waste products causes a disturbance in the functioning of the nervous system. Poisoning leads to headaches and dizziness. Often, patients infected with worms experience such symptoms for the development of migraines, starting to take painkillers, which in turn negatively affects their health. Throughout their lives, parasites use the beneficial substances that can be obtained in the human body. Because of this, the patient experiences a vitamin deficiency, which manifests itself in a feeling of constant fatigue and weakness. Such disorders resulting from infection of the body with worms are particularly pronounced in children - infants do not sleep well, are capricious, and school-age children reduce their academic performance.
  • Allergic reactions to helminthiasis and skin manifestations are also common consequences of this problem. Due to the fact that parasites secrete the products of their vital activity into the human body, some reactions in the body begin to take place more actively, such as skin rashes and itching. Rhinitis and dry cough can also occur, and the condition of poisoned nails and hair causes confusion.
  • Helminths, when they enter the human body and settle, also cause a deterioration in general health, expressed in a decrease in immunity, with frequent colds. In an infected person, the area of ​​the nasopharynx, urinary tract, and genitals often causes inflammatory diseases. Furthermore, the presence of helminths in the human body can be manifested by the appearance of bad breath and an unpleasant taste in the mouth.

Any discrepancies in health and well-being that require consultation with a professional and certain tests are required. Many who are thinking about the possibility of infecting helminths are looking for the answer to whether garlic helps against worms, believing that the tools available will help avoid such an unpleasant problem as helminthiasis. But to make sure there are no intruders in your body, you need to go through a thorough examination.

How can I identify the problem?

Under certain living conditions, worms are suspected. Which doctor should I see to diagnose and properly treat such a problem? A chief specialist in a disease such as helminthiasis is an infectious disease physician.

The person skilled in the art can pre-diagnose a certain type of parasite that has “settled” in the patient’s body based on certain indications. So in the case of pinworm invasion, the itching is characteristic, it can be felt in the anus, which intensifies mainly at night. If the parasites are actively multiplying and there are a lot of them, they can also be seen on the stool with the naked eye. Deep dysbiosis develops in the background of intestinal mucosal damage in the background of infection with helminths such as whipworm, trematode Schistosoma, hookworm. If the invasion of the body is caused by a broad tapeworm, B-12-deficient anemia is a characteristic symptom in addition to dysbiosis. Ascariasis is characterized by severe weight loss, obsessive cough, weakness, and sore throat. The development of jaundice, disturbance of the liver and spleen may indicate infection of liver parasites.

It should be noted that the incubation time for different types of helminth samples can range from 3-4 days to 3-4 weeks. But for a parasite like filarias that cause filariasis or elephantiasis, such a time interval is up to a year and a half.

Only a specialist can determine the presence of helminths in the body, their type and treatment. It is impossible to choose an effective treatment for worms in children or adults on your own!

To determine helminthic invasion, three main tests are assigned to anyone of any age:

  • stool for helminth eggs;
  • blood in the lamblia, a parasite in the liver;
  • scraping due to enterobiasis.

Under certain circumstances, the patient may order additional tests, such as during a recent visit to tropical regions, where they may become infected with parasites typical of Hungary.

Risk Group

Perhaps no one is free of such a problem as worms. Treatment of the invasion should be selected by a specialist only after the diagnosis has been made and the general health of the patient should be considered. Perhaps someone is complaining that over-the-counter medications are available against a wide range of worms in any pharmacy. But only a professional can recommend this or that cure for use. As with any disease, helminthiasis is best prevented. This is especially true for vulnerable people:

  • small children;
  • humans in close contact with animals;
  • who consume meat or fish that has not been fully heat-treated;
  • hunters.

Today, experts are conducting research into the effects of helminths on the development of many serious diseases, including cancer. This is why the problem of time-limited invasion, high-quality prevention of infections, is becoming very relevant to modern society.

Pharmacy products

worm tablets are available at any pharmacy. Their price range is quite extensive. But before you buy and take any medicine, you should seek the advice of a specialist because various parasites such as worms require proper treatment. Only a doctor can recommend a drug that can get rid of uninvited guests in the human body within a certain time frame. Drugs can be roughly classified according to their effect on parasites:

  • paralyzes the activity of individuals;
  • violates metabolic processes in parasitic tissues;
  • blocks certain processes in the helminth body.

What pills can I buy to prevent worms? This is a common question that pharmacists hear in pharmacies. They work mainly to predict the obvious manifestation of helminthic invasion, a person only assumes an infection without noticing differences in health status.

You can also buy herbs for worms in pharmacies that have been proven by scientific research and have an anthelmintic effect.

Helping Plants

The treatment of worms in children and the prevention of helminthiasis should become one of the permanent points of care for children of all ages. Because children, by mastering the world around them, all try to “taste and taste”, there is a constant risk of getting the same pinworms or roundworms.

For centuries, people have been trying to get rid of worms with the help of plants. Currently, the antiparasitic effects of some of them are confirmed by scientific research. These are, for example, pumpkin seeds, which have laxative and consequently anthelmintic properties. A similar effect has a brittle sea buckthorn bark, which can be purchased in pharmacies as a powder for infusion or decoction.

Does garlic help with worms? Yes, in some cases this spice has an anthelmintic effect. In addition, garlic-based infusions and tinctures stimulate the immune system, affecting the body’s ability to self-cleanse unwanted guests — viruses, bacteria, fungi, and helminths. Herbs against worms continue to be popular, especially as preventative agents - these are tansy, centaury, bitter wormwood, ginger, chamomile. Used in decoctions and infusions, they have laxative, anthelmintic, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory properties. It would be more reasonable to take such folk medicines as an adjunct to the main therapy of conventional invasion or preventive measures.

Traditional methods

Another way to get rid of intestinal worms is to rinse. You can use medicines and herbs that cause diarrhea. And you can use a recipe for enema worms. For example, this is:

  • 20 grams of wormwood should be shredded;
  • pour 3 liters of boiled boiled water into the raw material;
  • insist for half an hour;
  • drain, filter the resulting product and push through the cheesecloth;
  • Use a warm infusion - 25-35 degrees for a more comfortable feeling during the procedure and for better performance of the components.

You can only give an enema once a day. Moreover, like any other medical intervention in the human body, this should be discussed with a specialist. Enemas help remove toxins and toxins, the waste products of parasites, and themselves. But if the invasion is not a cavity but an interstitial, then the enema will be just an excipient that cleanses the intestines. Many herbs can be used to produce such remedies as enemas for parasites - chamomile, St. John's wort, calendula. The proportions in this case are unchanged - 20 grams of dry grass / 3 liters of water. They allow you to cope with the task and not damage the intestinal microflora.

Hygiene and prevention

Such a problem as worms is always relevant to humans. Invasions were handled by all possible means. The pharmaceutical industry is constantly releasing new drugs that can cope with helminthic infections in the body. But the best cure is prevention. Since helminth infection occurs mainly through the mouth, the entry of parasite eggs into the oral cavity and further into the intestines should be ruled out. To do this, the following rules must be strictly adhered to:

  • Wash your hands regularly with soap and water;
  • Keep household items, such as toys, that a child can put in their mouths clean;
  • Wash vegetables and fruits thoroughly with running water;
  • vaccinate and treat pets that family members come into contact with;
  • Heat the meat and fish thoroughly while cooking;
  • observe the rules of personal hygiene (regular change of underwear, care of the intimate area with special care products);
  • If you suspect helminth infection, or even for prophylaxis only, you should consult your doctor to order a special test and to select medication and prevention medications.

Taking precautions will help you avoid health problems such as worms. Treating an invasion can be quite lengthy and therefore costly, although prevention provides protection against invasion on the one hand and general benefits for the body on the other, preventing infection not only by worms but also by fungi, viruses and bacteria.