Most worm infections are not serious and can be easily treated with medicine.
Some types of worms can infect people. Some can be caught in Northern Ireland and others are only caught abroad. Most worm infections aren't serious and can be easily treated with medicine.
Most people don't experience serious complications from pinworm infections, but in rare cases the following complications can occur: Urinary tract infections (UTIs). UTIs can develop if you do not treat the pinworm infection. Vaginitis and endometritis.
Adult worms may live up to 17 years in the human body and can continue to make new microfilariae for much of this time. Most people with loiasis do not have any symptoms.
You might have anal itching, especially at night. You could also have stomach pain, nausea, or vaginal itching. Sometimes pinworms can be seen around your anus or on your underwear or bed sheets about 2 to 3 hours after you've gone to bed.
Threadworms do not go away by themselves, and people do not build up immunity to them, so they must be treated in order to eradicate them totally from the body.
However, parasitic infections still occur in the United States, and in some cases, affect millions of people. Often they can go unnoticed, with few symptoms. But many times these infections cause serious illnesses, including seizures, blindness, heart failure, and even death.
You can get worms in different ways, depending on what type they are. Many times people get worms by accidentally swallowing them or their eggs. Some worms can go through your skin when they are young and small. Sometimes you get worms when an infected insect bites you or when you eat meat from an infected animal.
Except in severe cases of heartworm infestation, worms do not usually constitute an emergency. However, worms should never be left untreated, as worm infestations can cause damage to your dog's internal organs. In a worst-case scenario, the effects of worms can even lead to a loss of consciousness and death.
Signs and Symptoms
Parasites can live in the intestines for years without causing symptoms.
Threadworms live about 5-6 weeks in the gut, and then die. However, before they die the female worms lay tiny eggs around the anus. This tends to be at night when you are warm and still in bed.
Most types of worms that infect humans only cause mild symptoms, but it's still important to contact a doctor if you suspect a worm infection so you can get treated early. Medication is often effective at getting rid of worms.
Sometimes worms are visible in the anal area, on underwear, or in the toilet. In stool, they look like small pieces of white cotton thread.
For most people, treatment will involve taking a single dose of a medication called mebendazole to kill the worms. If necessary, another dose can be taken after 2 weeks.
If you have worms, a GP will prescribe medicine to kill them. You take this for 1 to 3 days. The people you live with may also need to be treated. Any worms in your gut will eventually pass out in your poo.
Coconut is the most effective home remedy to treat intestinal worms. Consume a tbsp of crushed coconut in your breakfast. After 3 hours, drink about one glass of lukewarm milk mixed with 2 tbsps of castor oil. Drink this for a week to get rid of all types of intestinal worms.
Cysticercosis is an infection caused by the larvae of the parasite Taenia solium. This infection occurs after a person swallows tapeworm eggs. The larvae get into tissues such as muscle and brain, and form cysts there (these are called cysticerci).
These larval cysts infect brain, muscle, or other tissue, and are a major cause of adult onset seizures in most low-income countries. A person gets cysticercosis by swallowing eggs found in the feces of a person who has an intestinal tapeworm.
About half the world's population (over 3 billion people) are in infected with at least one of the three worms forming what Columbia University parasitologist Dickson Despommier calls the "unholy trinity"—large roundworm, hookworm and whipworm.
It moves. If it doesn't wiggle, it's probably lint or a thread. The worm may be seen around the anus or on the child's bottom. It is especially active at night or early morning.
Threadworm is spread when children scratch their bottom, causing the eggs to collect under the fingernails. The child then carries the worm eggs back to their mouth with their hands. The eggs can also be spread indirectly, in food, dust, or other items.
The eggs pass into the digestive system, where they hatch. About 1 to 2 months later, adult female pinworms lay eggs on the skin right around the anus, which makes the area itchy. Often, this happens at night.