Ascaridosis, its symptoms and treatment (anthelmintic drugs)

Helminths are parasites that affect more than 95% of the world's population. No one is insured against worms, as there are a lot of ways to infect these creatures. The risk of becoming a carrier of any parasite is especially great among children after the first year of life, they play in the sand and pull everything into the mouth. The incidence increases in the period when the baby goes to the kindergarten: general toys, toilet, unwashed hands - a guarantee to "grab" the eggs of the worms. One of the most common helminthiasis in children is ascariasis, we will consider it in more detail.

What is this worm?

Ascarid is a representative of roundworms, its adult individuals live in the human intestines, constantly poisoning it with the products of their vital activity.

You can get infected after contact with the feces of the patient, ascaris eggs can survive in the soil for about ten years, getting from there to fruits, vegetables or greens. Carriers of infection are cockroaches and flies. We can bring the eggs of helminths into the house on their shoes. The source of infection is public transport, a sauna, a cafe. Eggs worm are found on money, door handles and even in house dust.

In the small intestine, the larva emerges from the envelope, enters the bloodstream and travels to the lungs, at this stage a person may have a cough, along with the phlegm, it enters the stomach, and then into the intestine, and there it begins to grow and grow to 40 centimeters .

How does it manifest asaridosis?

When the larvae are destroyed, a large number of allergens enter the body of the carrier, in addition, the process of digestion and assimilation of nutrients suffers. The person becomes irritable, he quickly gets tired, sharply grows thin.

Allergic reactions (rash, cough) and abnormalities in intestinal activity (nausea, diarrhea, vomiting) can be observed. But more often the disease runs without symptoms.

Rapidly multiplying, ascarids can lead to such complications as intestinal obstruction, liver abscesses, and in case of getting into the lungs - to choking. Infectious diseases that occur on the background of the parasite have a more severe course. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct timely treatment of ascarids.

How to diagnose an infection?

Often it is difficult to conduct differential diagnosis between helminthiases and any intestinal pathologies.

The diagnosis can be made after detection in the feces of eggs ascaris or the worm itself. But the difficulty lies in the fact that all helminths have a cyclic nature of reproduction, so eggs with larvae are not always found.

In the blood there is an increase in eosinophils, which is a consequence of an allergic reaction to all worms.

How to treat ascariasis?

Measures for the induction of worms begin after their detection. To get rid of parasites, antihelminthic drugs are used. They are mostly toxic, therefore they are prescribed only according to indications and require strict adherence to dosage, especially in children. The goal of such treatment is to reduce morbidity and prevent complications. However, it is proved that after a person has drunk anthelmintic drugs, in 80% of cases he again becomes a carrier of parasites within six months. This circumstance pushes doctors to prescribe drugs as prevention. In some cases, such tactics are justified, especially if people live in rural areas or work in the field.

The most common anthelmintic drugs used in ascariasis are medications "Mebendazole", "Albendazole", "Levomizol" and "Pirantel".

Their action is based on the fact that they paralyze the muscles of the roundworm (namely, they include ascaris), not allowing it to stay in the intestine more. The use of these drugs does not require preparation, most often one dose of medication is enough. It should be remembered that anthelmintic drugs can not be taken during pregnancy, and it is also necessary to carefully prescribe them to children.