The worm may be seen around the anus or on the child's bottom. It is especially active at night or early morning. Rarely, the pinworm is seen on the surface of a stool. The pinworm's secretions are a strong skin irritant and cause the itching.
While the infected person is sleeping, mature pinworms make their way out of the rectum to lay their eggs around the anal opening. Small, thin, grayish-white worms may be visible around the anus two-three hours after the person falls asleep.
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.
Worms can sometimes be seen on the skin near the anus or on underclothing, pajamas, or sheets about 2 to 3 hours after falling asleep. Pinworm eggs can be collected and examined using the “tape test” as soon as the person wakes up.
Check if it's threadworms
They look like pieces of white thread. You might also see them around your child's bottom (anus). The worms usually come out at night while your child is sleeping.
Pinworm infections often produce no symptoms but, when they occur, symptoms can include: itchy bottom, especially at night.
They don't always cause symptoms, but people often experience itchiness around their bottom or vagina. It can be worse at night and disturb sleep. Read more about the symptoms of threadworms.
Anyone can get pinworms
While an infected person sleeps, female pinworms crawl out of the anus and lay their eggs on the surrounding skin. People get pinworm infections from swallowing these eggs after touching an infected person's skin or personal belongings, such as clothing, bedding, and toys.
Pinworms can survive up to two weeks on clothing, bedding or other objects, if kept at room temperature.
A person is infected with pinworms by ingesting pinworm eggs either directly or indirectly. These eggs are deposited around the anus by the worm and can be carried to common surfaces such as hands, toys, bedding, clothing, and toilet seats.
In order to stop the spread of pinworm and possible re-infection, people who are infected should shower every morning to help remove a large amount of the eggs on the skin.
An adult pinworm generally is 1/4 to 1/2 inch (about 6 to 13 millimeters) in length. The most common symptom of infection is anal itching, particularly at night, as worms migrate to the host's anal area to lay their eggs.
Pinworm, or Enterobius vermicularis, is a small intestinal roundworm about the size of a staple. The female adult worms leave the anus in the middle of the night while the person is sleeping to deposit her eggs around the skin of the perianal region.
The itching from the pinworms might wake you up in the middle of the night and make you squirm a lot. So if you're itchy and sore on your bottom, tell your mom or dad. And if you see worms in your underwear or in the toilet, you should tell a parent right away.
To remove threadworm eggs and prevent re-infection: Change and wash underwear, nightwear and, if possible bed linen and towels, every day for a few days. A hot water wash, or the heat of an iron, will kill the eggs.
Because pinworms lay their eggs at night, washing the anal area in the morning can help reduce the number of pinworm eggs on your body. Showering may help avoid possible re-contamination in bath water. Change underwear and bedding daily. This helps remove eggs.
Complete die-off within the tested exposure time range was noted for 70 °C, 75 °C and 80 °C, however treatment at 60 °C and 65 °C allowed for development of a few eggs after incubation. Incubation of heat-treated samples is required when egg damage is not visible, in order to confirm die-off.
Wash all the sheets, blankets, towels, and clothing in the house in hot water. Carefully clean everyone's fingernails (which may hold the worm eggs) and cut them short. Scrub toys, countertops, floors, and other surfaces the infected child has touched. Vacuum carpets.
To treat pinworm infection, your doctor may recommend over-the-counter pyrantel pamoate or prescribe medication to all members of your household to prevent infection and reinfection. The most common prescription anti-parasite medications for pinworms are: Mebendazole. Albendazole (Albenza)
How long does it take to work? The medicine should start to work straight away but it may take several days to kill all the worms.
If a child has a pinworm infection, you can see worms in the anal area. They are white or yellowish white in color, approximately ¼ – ½ inch long, and look like a piece of thread. They will also move or wiggle.
If threadworms are present you can often see one or two coming out of the anus. Do not be alarmed! Ask your chemist for advice on treatment in the next day or so.
Treatment for threadworms
Many anti-worm preparations, for example pyrantel (e.g. brand names Anthel, Combantrin and Early Bird) and mebendazole (e.g. Combantrin-1 with Mebendazole, Vermox) can be bought over-the-counter at pharmacies. However, some are only available on prescription, such as albendazole (Zentel).