Accidentally swallowing or breathing in pinworm eggs causes a pinworm infection. The tiny (microscopic) eggs can be carried to your mouth by contaminated food, drink or your fingers. Once swallowed, the eggs hatch in the intestines and mature into adult worms within a few weeks.
Pinworm infection is spread by the fecal-oral route, that is by the transfer of infective pinworm eggs from the anus to someone's mouth, either directly by hand or indirectly through contaminated clothing, bedding, food, or other articles.
Larvae hatch from the eggs in your small intestine and then go through the intestinal wall to travel to the heart and lungs via the bloodstream or lymphatic system. After maturing for about 10 to 14 days in your lungs, the larvae break into your airway and travel up the throat, where they're coughed up and swallowed.
Threadworms lay their eggs around an infected person's anus (bottom), usually at night. Along with the eggs, the worm also secretes a mucus that causes itching. If the eggs get stuck on the person's fingertips when they scratch, they can be transferred to their mouth or on to surfaces and clothes.
Endometritis infections can occur if pinworms travel from the anus to the vagina, affecting the uterus, fallopian tubes, and other pelvic organs.
Abstract. A rare case of enterobius vermicularis pin-worm is reported in the nose. An 11-year-old girl presented with the vague symptoms of crawling sensation in the nose for few weeks, who had received treatment for allergic rhinitis.
How long does pinworms last? The life cycle of a pinworm is 4 to 6 weeks. Without treatment, infestation will continue as long as fresh eggs are being swallowed, unless a person develops immunity to pinworms, which is unusual before age 15.
Life Cycle
Maturation is completed in the upper gastrointestinal tract. , either intentionally or accidentally, in contaminated food or water. In these cases, worms have been found in the mucosal tissues of the lips, cheek, tongue, tonsils, gums, and occasionally esophagus.
Migration of parasites in the oral cavity is unusual and is primarily caused by Gongylonema pulchrum. This gullet nematode has been characterized as commonly occurring in various animals from captive primates to sheep, donkeys, squirrel monkeys, and other animals. Cases remain rare in humans.
In heavy infestations, it's possible to find worms after you cough or vomit. The worms can come out of other body openings, such as your mouth or nostrils. If this happens to you, take the worm to your doctor so that he or she can identify it and prescribe the proper treatment.
This infection is known as anisakiasis and is rarely diagnosed, as worms are hard to screen and the symptoms mimic food poisoning. It should, however, be noted that a parasite getting lodged inside a tonsil is an extremely rare occurrence.
Typical pinworm infections don't cause serious problems. In rare circumstances, heavy infestations can cause infection of female genitals. The parasite can travel from the anal area up the vagina to the uterus, fallopian tubes and around the pelvic organs.
Pinworms or their eggs have occasionally been detected at other sites, such as the liver and lung. Rarer clinical manifestations include salpingitis, pelvic pain and the formation of granulomas in the peritoneal cavity.
When someone scratches the itchy area, tiny pinworm eggs get on their fingers. Contaminated fingers can then carry pinworm eggs to the mouth, where they go back into the body, or onto touched surfaces, where they can live for 2 to 3 weeks.
If left untreated, the intense itching and scratching associated with these infections will result in secondary bacterial infections. Some of these may be difficult to treat. Untreated people can continue to infect other people.
Patients may note a lump or inflammatory mass in the mouth. The worm migrates in the submucosa of the oral cavity and can appear as a spiral formation form in buccal mucosa, gums, lips, or palate. Although it's rare; it's real, and patients can be easily treated.
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If the larval worm enters the nervous system, including the brain, it can result in a condition known as neurocysticercosis. Infection of this kind can often cause epilepsy once inside the brain.
If a person with a pinworm infection touches their underwear, bedsheets, or their anus, they can pick up eggs on their fingers. If they touch another surface, they can leave the eggs there. Anyone who touches that surface and then touches their mouth is at risk of infection.
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.
Adults are rarely affected, except for parents of infected children. Infection often occurs in more than one family member. While an infected person sleeps, female pinworms crawl out of the anus and lay their eggs on the surrounding skin.