Many people are interested in the question of what worm eggs look like, because infections with parasites are not uncommon. The infestation usually occurs through the penetration of worm eggs into the human body. This can happen through dirty hands, food, and contact with feces and animal hair. If you suspect a parasite infestation, you should try to detect worm eggs in your stool. However, the eggs cannot be seen with the naked eye; they are microscopic and can only be detected during stool analysis.
Roundworm infestation
Infection with roundworms occurs when eating unwashed vegetables and fruits, poorly fried meat and fish. Infection through dirty hands is particularly possible in children. The worm's habitat is the human intestine
Roundworm eggs can only be seen under a microscope. They are very small (about 0. 07 mm). Adult worms are also very difficult to detect in feces. Only after taking anthelmintics do particles of dead worms escape from the intestines. They look like translucent elongated inclusions.
Only a microscopic examination of the stool can help determine the presence of roundworm eggs. The eggs are yellow structures with a shell covered with tubercles. Sometimes an embryo is visible in fertilized eggs. They are very resistant to environmental influences and can exist outside the human body for many years.
Roundworm eggs
Since it is very difficult to detect traces of roundworms in the body, you should be aware of the symptoms of invasion: a sudden increase in body temperature;
- rashes;
- choking and coughing (sometimes with blood);
- muscle cramps;
- Joint pain.
These manifestations are associated with the effect of the roundworm allergen on the body. If such symptoms are detected, a stool examination for worm eggs is necessary.
Where to go if you suspect worms?
If you suspect a helminth infestation, you need to make an appointment with an infectious disease specialist. In the early stages, helminthiasis does not have specific symptoms, so it is quite difficult to suspect that you or a loved one have worms. As a rule, the patient complains of mild malaise: indigestion, headache, apathy.
If symptoms do not go away within a week or the condition recurs regularly (e. g. if you feel unwell every 3-4 months), you should consult your doctor. Bouts of poor health may be associated with parasite migration.
Pinworm infection
Pinworms can be transmitted through casual contact with a sick person (sharing objects, shaking hands). People are often attacked by cats and dogs; Worm eggs live on the fur of pets. Children are particularly susceptible to this disease. A child can become infected with these parasites in kindergarten or from animals. Pinworm eggs can be found on any objects that the patient has come into contact with. They can be found under fingernails, on toys, bedding and underwear. Therefore, it is very easy to become infected with pinworms.
Pinworm eggs
Pinworms lead to the development of a disease called enterobiasis. Signs of infestation are as follows:
- Itching in the rectal exit area;
- Diarrhea;
- nausea;
- sudden weight loss;
- Flatulence.
Pinworm eggs are not excreted in feces. Parasites multiply in the anal area, where they lay eggs, causing itching. To determine the presence of these worms in the body, the skin of the anus is scraped and the material removed is examined under a microscope. Such an analysis is usually required when a child starts school in kindergarten. The scraping is done in the morning before washing the child so as not to wash off the parasite eggs. Perform a triplicate analysis over several days. Under the microscope, pinworm eggs look like elongated white grain particles.
Adult pinworms can be found in the stool of children and adults. These are small white worms about 0. 5 to 1 cm long, one end of the body is pointed.
Folk remedies for helminths
For diphyllobothriasis, folk remedies should only be used after consulting a doctor. They are not intended to replace drug treatment, but can only complement it. The most commonly used recipe is pumpkin seeds.
Pumpkin seeds have a harmful effect on many helminths, including tapeworms. They contain cucurbitin, a substance that destroys parasites. The seeds are ground with a coffee grinder or blender and then diluted with water to form a paste. For adults you need 300 g of seeds, and for children 50 to 100 g. The prepared product is consumed in the morning on an empty stomach for 1 hour. You should not eat breakfast after that. After 3 hours you need to take a laxative and after another 30 minutes do an enema.
If the parasite comes out in the feces, it must be examined. You should pay attention to whether there is a head at one end of its body. If it is not present, it means that only the segments have come out and the parasite is able to regrow the body and release eggs. In this case, the course of treatment must be repeated.
Whipworms
This type of parasite is quite rare in the central zone of our country. Whipworms often live in the southern regions, as the eggs of this worm love warmth. Most infections are observed in rural areas.
Whipworm eggs live in the soil. Infestation occurs via hands, contaminated soil particles and poorly washed vegetables and fruit.
As a result of infection, a disease occurs - trichocephalosis. Whipworms parasitize the intestines. This worm causes anemia as it feeds on human blood and severe abdominal pain.
Whipworm egg
The parasite's eggs are excreted in the feces, but are very small and cannot always be seen even under a microscope. Eggs can only be detected in a stool test if the infestation is very severe. They are barrel-shaped and brownish-yellow in color. There are holes on both sides of the egg.
What do worms look like in feces? It is very difficult to detect them alive in feces because whipworms cannot live for long outside the human body. Only with anthelmintic therapy can you notice dead white worms in the feces.
To diagnose trichuriasis, the rectum and sigmoid colon are examined using a special device (sigmoidoscopy). In this way, accumulations of parasites in the intestine are detected. Treating the infestation takes a long time because the whipworm eggs are protected by a tight shell.
Diagnosis of helminthiases
When diagnosing many helminth infections, a stool examination is first performed. If you find black dots in your stool or white worms in your feces, this test should be done as soon as possible.
However, feces with black dots are not the only indication of coprogramming. Often, even eggs that are invisible to the eye can be easily identified under a microscope. A more precise diagnosis of feces by detecting helminth DNA particles is carried out using the PCR technique.
If a person has many black spots in the stool, there are other diagnostic methods such as the following:
- scratching near anus;
- Blood test using ELISA, PCR, RNGA and other methods;
- Be sure to perform blood biochemistry and CBC;
- To identify the localization of parasites, in some cases ultrasound, MRI and CT are performed;
- To diagnose the migration stage of helminths, an x-ray examination is indicated.
In certain forms of helminthiasis, an examination of sputum, rectal mucus, urine and the contents of the gallbladder may be performed. Sometimes an endoscopic examination is also used for diagnosis.
Trichinae
This is one of the most dangerous types of roundworms. Trichinella parasitizes human muscles. Severe infestations sometimes result in death.
Trichinella enters the body through consumption of poorly processed meat from wild and domestic animals. Worms are only killed at very high temperatures (approx. 80°C). Worms can be found in salted or smoked meats; such treatment does not kill their larvae.
Possible infection from undercooked meat
Parasite eggs cannot be detected in the human body. The female trichinae carry the eggs in her body, and then the larva is born. These are worms that reproduce ovoviviparously. It is impossible to detect trichinae in feces. Newborn larvae immediately enter the blood and lymph, bypassing the intestines. The larvae die quickly in the feces.
Usually the disease is diagnosed when the parasite has managed to invade the muscles. In this case, a person is bothered by the following symptoms: muscle pain;
- Swelling;
- febrile state (high temperature, pain, malaise);
- irregular bowel movements with constipation or diarrhea.
To detect invasion, a blood test with serological test is performed. This is the only method for detecting trichinae in the body.
An article for patients with a doctor-diagnosed illness. Does not replace a visit to the doctor and cannot be used for self-diagnosis.
Wide tapeworm
The human body contains only immature tapeworm eggs. They are excreted in feces and enter the external environment. With untreated wastewater, the eggs end up in bodies of water and begin their development there. First of all, they enter the body of freshwater crustaceans. Fish from reservoirs become infected with tapeworms when eating small crustaceans. And a person gets a helminth infestation if he eats poorly fried, infected fish from freshwater bodies or raw pike caviar.
Wide tapeworm eggs
The disease diphyllobothriasis occurs, which is manifested by the following symptoms: pain in the abdominal cavity;
- nausea and vomiting;
- intestinal problems (constipation or diarrhea);
- Loss of appetite or excessive hunger.
What do helminths from the tapeworm class look like? This is a large parasite that can reach 10 m in length. Only individual living parts (segments) of the worm can be found in the feces; they look like long (from 30 cm to 3 m) white ribbons. They should be removed from the stool with tweezers, transferred to a clean container and taken to a parasitologist or infectious disease specialist for analysis.
Microscopic examination of the stool can reveal tapeworm eggs. Their size is about 0. 07 mm. The eggs look like yellowish oval structures covered with a thick shell. One end of the egg is covered with a cap, the other end with a bulge.
Worm larvae can be excreted in the feces, but are harmless. Diphyllobothriasis cannot be transmitted from an infected person or animal. The infestation occurs exclusively through the consumption of fish.
Harm to the body
When a wide tapeworm enters the intestine, the disease diphyllobothriasis develops. The helminth mainly affects the gastrointestinal tract. Inflammation and ulcers form on the intestinal walls where the worm attaches. If there are not just one but several parasites in the body, they can block the intestinal lumen and thus lead to constipation. The helminth constantly irritates the walls of the gastrointestinal tract, which leads to disruption of digestive processes. In addition, it poisons the human body with waste products, causing allergies. If the parasite remains in the body for a long time, severe anemia and vitamin B12 deficiency occur.
Beef and pork tapeworm
People become infected with this type of parasite by consuming poorly processed meat from domestic animals. The worm segments are excreted in the patient's feces. In the external environment, the segments move through the soil and lay eggs with larvae inside. These eggs are then ingested by pets. When a person eats contaminated beef or pork, they become infected with the beef or pork tapeworm. To kill tapeworms, you need to boil or fry the meat for at least 30 minutes.
Bull tapeworm
Beef tapeworms cause taeniahrynchiasis and pork tapeworms cause taeniasis. The symptoms of these diseases are similar: abdominal pain;
- constant feeling of hunger;
- nausea and vomiting;
- Weakness;
- weight loss;
- Diarrhea;
- Itching in the anal area as the segments come out.
Worms in the patient's stool are in the form of segments. They look like light stripes about 1-2 cm long. The segments of the pork tapeworm are longer and consist of 3 segments.
Tapeworm eggs (oncospheres) are detected during stool analysis. They are round structures with a dense shell, inside of which there is an embryo.
Pork tapeworm infection is possible through dirty hands without an intermediate host. The segments excreted in the patient's feces are dangerous. They can enter the human body through contaminated soil. In this case, pork tapeworm larvae multiply in the human body and cause a serious disease – cysticercosis. This is a very dangerous invasion. The larvae invade the brain, spinal cord, eyes, heart and lungs, causing severe damage. In cysticercosis, the segments and eggs are not excreted in the feces. The disease can only be detected by a serological blood test and an analysis of cerebrospinal fluid.
classification
Modern medicine classifies worms parasitizing the human body as follows: Luminal. Such worms live in the intestinal lumen. These include the broadband worm, dwarf and bull tapeworm, hookworm, pinworm, whipworm, roundworm, etc.
Material. Such worms choose muscle and lung tissue as a habitat, as well as organs such as the pancreas, liver, brain, etc.
Depending on where exactly tissue worms are located, the invasion can have the following names:
- Filariasis. Parasites live in lymph nodes
- Cysticercosis. The area of the brain affected by helminths
- Echinococcosis. Helminth infestation is diagnosed in the liver
- Paragonimiasis. Parasites live in the lungs
Leeches
Of the worms in the fluke class, the cat fluke (liver fluke) is the most common in humans. The habitat of the worm eggs is fresh water. From there the parasite enters the body of shellfish and then into the fish. Cats and people become infected with the fluke through consumption of poorly processed freshwater fish and contaminated water. A sick cat poses no danger to humans.
Burbot liver with parasites
Fish from the carp family are most commonly infected. Salting or smoking does not kill the parasite. A fairly long heat treatment of the product is required. You can become infected with the leech if you accidentally swallow water from a pond or river. There are known cases of invasion after irrigation of beds with contaminated water.
The cat leech attacks the liver. There is pain in the abdominal cavity on the right side, nausea, vomiting, fever. During a medical examination, an enlargement of the organ is detected.
Adult worms are not excreted in feces. What do fluke worm eggs look like under the microscope? When examining the stool, you can see transparent ovals with a gold-colored shell. There is a plug on one side of the egg that opens when the larva hatches. For diagnostic purposes, a blood test for antibodies or an enzyme immunoassay is also carried out.
How to find out if worms are present?
It is impossible to independently determine the presence of helminthic infestation. In the early stages, the disease can be almost asymptomatic. The patient does not feel pain, the immune system is able to suppress the pathogenic effect of toxins and allergens for some time. As a rule, the exacerbation begins during larval migration or with an increase in the number of worms. The stronger the infestation (i. e. the more parasites), the more symptoms appear.
However, the asymptomatic course of the invasion is dangerous - the patient infects others and his health gradually worsens. In order to detect the disease, regular preventive examinations in the hospital are necessary. As part of prevention, the therapist prescribes tests for worms at least once a year. If you live in an endemic area: once every six months.
What can you see with the naked eye?
Since some parasites are very small, it is not always possible to determine their presence in the body based on eggs in the stool alone. Some parasites are microscopic and live hidden in the body without revealing their presence. In addition, they are not always localized in the intestines and can migrate throughout the body. Therefore, to diagnose parasitic infections, they resort to serological tests based on the antigen-antibody immune reaction.
All parasites look different, have their own specific development cycles, different infestation symptoms and different treatment regimens. However, there are a number of symptoms that may indicate a parasite infection in a person:
- rapid weight loss;
- Intestinal disorder: diarrhea replaces constipation;
- severe itching in the anus;
- rashes of unknown etiology;
- Stomach pain;
- Flatulence;
- loss of appetite;
- unexplained craving for sweets;
- sometimes uncontrollable appetite in adults;
- frequent colds due to a weakening of the body's defenses.