It's not always possible to prevent a threadworm infection, but you can significantly reduce your risk by always maintaining good hygiene and encouraging children to do the same. Children should wash their hands regularly, particularly after going to the toilet and before mealtimes.
Your children may come into contact with eggs in schools or nurseries, particularly in the toilets if they are not cleaned properly. This is why your child may have recurring threadworms, even if your home and personal hygiene are of a very high standard.
Threadworms are very common and easily spread, so it's hard to completely avoid them. Having threadworms doesn't mean you have poor hygiene. Here are some steps you can take to stop the infection: Wash hands often and scrub underneath fingernails, especially after using the toilet and before eating.
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.
Treatment consists of a medicine to kill the worms AND good hygiene to break the cycle of infection described above. You can buy the following medicines from pharmacies. You can also get them on prescription. Mebendazole is the usual treatment for people aged over 2 years.
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.
Wash your hands frequently and scrub under your fingernails after going to the toilet and before eating food. Make sure your child does this too. Keep your child's and your own fingernails short. Change bed linen, towels and underwear daily for several days after treatment.
COMBANTRIN® is only effective against adult worms, which means any eggs or immature worms inside the body might still linger after the initial treatment. In order to minimise the risk of reinfestation, a follow-up treatment two to four weeks later is strongly recommended if symptoms are still present.
If pinworm infection occurs again, the infected person should be retreated with the same two-dose treatment. The infected person's household contacts and caretakers also should be treated. If pinworm infection continues to occur, the source of the infection should be sought and treated.
You can get infected by: touching objects or surfaces with worm eggs on them if someone with worms doesn't wash their hands. touching soil or swallowing water or food with worm eggs in it – mainly a risk in parts of the world without modern toilets or sewage systems.
British researchers have identified a protein that exists in some people's gut mucus that seems to be toxic to parasitic worms. Those with the protein are able to ward off infection, while those who lack the protein are more easily infected with the parasites, researchers said.
Children can get threadworms when they accidentally get worm eggs on their hands and swallow them. This might happen if they put their hands in their mouths or bite their nails after coming into contact with people with worms or with worm-infected dust, toys or bed linen.
Chlorine dioxide gas inactivates pinworm eggs in a non-invasive and non-corrosive manner.
COMBANTRIN -1 Tablets treat threadworm in a single dose – one tablet, once only.
Scratching the anus or vagina, or wiping them after going to the toilet, can cause the eggs to stick to your fingertips or under your fingernails. If you don't wash your hands, the eggs can be transferred to your mouth or on to food or objects, such as toys and kitchen utensils.
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)
Complications. 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.
Mebendazole does not kill the worms' eggs, and these can cause you to get worms again and pass it on to other people. A doctor or pharmacist may advise you to take mebendazole again after 2 weeks, to stop the worms from coming back.
So it's advisable to follow-up on symptoms roughly 2-4 weeks after the initial dose, and administer a second dose if you detect any lingering signs of a worm infection.
Whilst this makes sense operationally it means that some people are not getting enough drugs to actually kill the worms. Over time this sup-optimal dosage potentially leaves the door open for the parasites to develop resistance to the deworming drugs.
Promptly wash used bed linen, all clothing, towels and washcloths in hot water with detergent. Vacuum carpets and floors well. Wash the canister or change the vacuum cleaner's bag after each use. Seal the bag before throwing it away.
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.
If the skin is irritated a dilute mild antiseptic can help. Applying Vaseline to the skin after cleaning can help protect the skin and prevent the eggs sticking.