Helminthiasis is a parasitic disease in which various types of worms belonging to the lower group live and reproduce in the body. Parasites cannot exist in the environment, because they need certain conditions and food. Being in the human body, worms feed on blood, as well as any nutritional and energy resources, as a result of which the body is depleted over time, and its protective functions decrease. In addition, worms secrete waste products that accumulate directly in the soft tissues, which eventually leads to intoxication.
In this case, worms can appear not only in children, but also in adults. According to statistics, every year helminthiases are increasingly diagnosed in a large number of patients, therefore, every person who needs his health dear, must know how to find out if there are worms. Let's dwell on this issue in more detail and find out how all the same you can detect parasites in yourself in order to start timely treatment.
general information
Before we talk about how to find out if there are worms in the body, let's first find out what are dangerous helminthiases. Modern medicine knows about 240 species of lower worms, but in our country there are no more than 50. According to statistics, in developed countries with good social and environmental conditions, about 10 percent of the population suffer from worms. In Africa, where the standard of living is very low, this figure reaches 80 percent.
The greatest danger to health and life is not the parasites themselves, but various diseases that they can lead to.
The most common and dangerous among them are the following:
- biohelminthiasis - an ailment characterized by the presence of a worm in the body of an animal and the ingestion of a parasite in the human body with its meat;
- geohelminthiasis - the penetration of an adult worm into the human body from the external environment;
- contagious helminthiasis is an acute pathological condition in which mature individuals are secreted from the human body.
In the absence of treatment, diseases can flow into the acute stage, while this creates a threat to the health and life of the patient, and there may also be a chance of death. Therefore, the question of how to find out if there are worms is very relevant.
Signs of parasites in an adult
Let's dwell on this in more detail. So, how to find out if there are worms without analysis? There are many symptoms that can help you with this.
The most common among them are the following:
- itching in the anus, which becomes simply unbearable at night;
- the allocation of parasites from the anus of the patient;
- visual identification of subcutaneous and tissue pinworms;
- muscle pain
- migraine;
- fever;
- inflammation of the lymph nodes, which may be accompanied by the formation of pus;
- decreased performance.
At later stages, when the patient develops helminthiases, the following clinical manifestations are added to the general symptoms:
- nausea;
- vomiting
- heartburn;
- belching;
- discomfort in the abdomen;
- heaviness in the right side.
If you do not know how you can find out if there are worms, then just listen to your body. As mentioned earlier, parasites cause intoxication, so the patient develops various allergic reactions.
Symptoms in children
We talked about the clinical manifestations of parasites in adults, but how do you know if a child has worms? By and large, the symptoms are practically no different, but babies respond to worms more clearly. The skin of children is softer than that of adults, so they may show irritation of the urethra, which leads to incontinence of fluid during sleep. In addition, there is increased anxiety, decreased mental activity, tearfulness. Very often, during a medical examination, doctors find worm eggs laid in folds in the anus. However, this only occurs when the baby does not adhere to the basic rules of personal hygiene.
How to determine the type of parasite by clinical manifestations?
So what do you need to know about this? We have already discussed how to determine if a person has worms. But is it possible to somehow independently identify the type of worms parasitizing in the body? The answer is yes! The clinical manifestations will help you with this. The fact is that each type of helminth behaves differently. Therefore, having an idea of the features of their habits, you can determine what specifically wound up inside you.
Enterobiosis is accompanied by a very severe itching in the anus, which in the evening and at night becomes simply unbearable. There are no noticeable manifestations. With echinococcus, the patient experiences pulling pains of moderate intensity in the right side of the abdominal cavity. If a person has an opisthorchis in the body, then he experiences discomfort in the abdomen, and he also manifests severe jaundice. With trichinosis throughout the body, edematous processes occur, which are especially pronounced on the eyelids and face.
The most dangerous types of helminth pathologies are considered as ankylostomidosis and ascariasis. Their parasitism is accompanied by a large number of side effects. In patients, hematological syndrome, anemia, bowel obstruction, hemorrhagic colitis are very often observed.
So, now you know how to find out if an adult and a child have worms. But for an accurate diagnosis, an examination with a profiled specialist is necessary. Therefore, if you suspect worms, it is best to go to the hospital and undergo the necessary examinations.
What tests are prescribed for suspected parasites?
Modern medicine involves only two examination methods that allow you to detect worms in the human body. For this, feces or blood are taken for research. Also, doctors can, at their discretion, prescribe both hardware and instrumental methods to patients. In most cases, such a need arises when drug treatment is ineffective and the patient requires surgery.
Feces analysis
If you are interested in the answer to the question of how to find out if there are worms, then the most common and reliable method of examination is stool analysis. It does not require any preliminary preparation of the patient, however, some doctors recommend that no treatment be performed near the anal area. Feces can be taken at any time of the day immediately after bowel movement. The feces are placed in a special container, closed with a sealed lid. The material is best suited for analysis within the first hour after collection. If this is not possible, then it is stored in a refrigerator, but in this case reliable results can only be obtained within the first five hours.
The testimony may be false if less than four months have passed since the parasites entered the body. In addition, the life cycle of worms must be taken into account. The thing is that they do not lay eggs continuously. Therefore, if the material was taken for research during the quiet period, then it can show a false negative result.
Blood analysis
What is he like? Many people are interested in the question of whether worms are recognized by blood. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is common in medical practice. The advantage of this study is that it allows you to detect not only parasites that live in the feces, but also worms in the soft tissues. But here it is important to take into account the fact that the most reliable are the results obtained during the first three months after infection. It is during this period that worm larvae can be detected in the blood.
Macrogelmintoscopic diagnosis
What is its feature? When answering the question of how to find out whether a person has worms, it is worth mentioning such a variety of diagnostics as macrohelminthoscopic studies. They aim to detect worms that are wound in fluids and soft tissues. This analysis is prescribed when doctors are unable to detect helminth eggs in feces, but the clinical picture indicates the presence of worms. In this case, doctors do not even need to use a microscope, since everything is visible with the naked eye.
Microhelmintoscopic diagnosis
Kato smear is very effective for detecting worms in the human body. For its conduct, only 10-15 milligrams of feces is enough. However, to obtain accurate results, it is worth taking the material in the morning, and the patient is not recommended to wash before going to the doctor.
The feces are left warm for about 30 minutes. This is necessary so that the feces become a little lighter, and the eggs of the worms are well looked at in it. A similar method allows you to identify in humans most of the most common types of helminthiases.
Online parasite test
Profiled specialists who deal with the problems of worms have created a special test that allows you to determine the likelihood of the presence of worms in the body, based on risk factors. Its essence lies in the fact that a person needs to answer a number of questions, and if two points are received for each of them, then with a high degree of probability it can be assumed that parasites are wound up in his body. At 25 points, it is recommended to go to the hospital for a full examination.
What to do if you find parasites?
So, we looked at how to find out if there are worms. But what if the tests confirmed the presence of worms?
To get rid of them, follow these tips:
- check with your doctor for a reliable diagnosis;
- consult a specialist about treatment;
- strictly adhere to the therapy program;
- observe basic rules of personal hygiene.
Worms are not as scary as many people think. Modern drugs are highly effective and can defeat parasites in just one pill. The main thing is to see a doctor on time and start treatment on time. Only in this way can you avoid many negative consequences.