According to the World Health Organization, about 90% of the world's population is infected with one or another type of parasite. About 250 species of worms alone (helminthiases) can live in the human body, but in addition to them there are also protozoa (amoebae, lamblia and others), arthropods, insect larvae and many other parasites.
Often, residents of large cities are infected with flatworms, roundworms and tapeworms, dangerous to health and very unpleasant parasites, but only residents of tropical countries and tourists who go on vacation to the South usually encounter truly terrible creatures that are parasiteshuman body. America, Africa or Australia.
Every day, everyone is faced with a large number of parasites; You can become infected with worms by eating food or drinking water with parasite eggs or larvae, through close contact with a parasite carrier (animal or human), more rarely, infection occurs through household items or insect bites.
The most common parasite
- Ringworm– representatives of this type of worm are diagnosed in 100 million people in the world every year. Adult roundworms are roundworms, up to 40 cm long, which can exist in the human intestine for years, eating their red blood cells and poisoning the human body with waste products. Female ringworms can lay up to 200 thousand eggs per day, which are released with feces and infect the soil. Ascaris larvae can migrate throughout the body, affecting internal organs, blood vessels and even the human brain.
- pinworms- small roundworms that live in the large intestine. Pinworm infections are common in childhood; parasites enter the human body when the rules of personal hygiene are not followed (do not wash your hands after using the toilet, walking and before eating, do not change underwear on time, lick your fingers, and so on). This ringworm does not cause severe hangovers like other worms, but can cause the development of diseases such as enterocolitis, vulvovaginitis, salpingitis, cystitis and others. During the breeding season, adult worms leave the lower part of the large intestine and lay eggs in the perianal fold, which causes severe itching in children, which is the main symptom of worm infection.
- Cattle and pig tapewormsis a large tapeworm, its length can reach 10 m. Despite its impressive size, tapeworms are not considered the largest and longest parasites. The longest worm in the world, the broad tapeworm, can reach a length of 25 m. Parasitic infection occurs when eating undercooked meat or through contact and household contact. Tapeworms not only cause intoxication and exhaustion of the host, but can also cause bile duct blockage or intestinal obstruction. No less dangerous are worm larvae, which penetrate internal organs, the brain and even the eyeball.
- Giardia- protozoan parasites or protozoa that live in the human small intestine. Infection with protozoa is possible by consuming food or water contaminated with cysts. Diagnosing Giardia infection is quite difficult, because there are no specific symptoms of this disease. A sick person feels constantly unwell, often falls ill, or is diagnosed with symptoms of various internal organ diseases.
Which parasite is considered the most dangerous?
Representatives of the following species are considered the most terrible and dangerous parasites in the world: filaria, schistosoma, guinea worm, cysticerci, toxoplasma, loa loa and some other less common parasites.
Filaria
Filaria are round and long worms, about 45 cm long; you can become infected with filaria larvae through the bite of a blood-sucking insect; mosquitoes usually carry larvae, and rarely other insects. Filariae penetrate the lymphatic vessels and clog them. As a result of the infection, a person's lower limbs swell until he loses the ability to move freely.
"Elephant disease" is widespread in hot countries, affecting both local residents and tourists, and the latter in a more severe form. This disease is considered very dangerous because of the difficulties in diagnosis and treatment - the disease becomes noticeable only when it becomes chronic, which is almost impossible to cure.
Schistosomes
Schistosoma is a special type of worm that lives in the human bloodstream. Small flatworms, up to 2 mm long, enter the human body when swimming or drinking water contaminated with cercariae parasites.
Schistosomiasis is mostly a tropical disease, contracted by swimming in open water. Once in the human body, schistosomes can cause severe damage to the liver, bladder or intestines.
Guinea worm
Guinea worm or dracunculiasis is another serious parasitic disease that can be contracted by drinking dirty water in tropical countries. Roundworms, entering the human intestine, literally gnaw it, then penetrate the lymphatic channels and subcutaneous fat, where they can grow up to 80 cm in length.
Where the parasite lives, a deep abscess appears, in which one or several large worms can be found. Such parasitosis can only be cured by surgery.
Loa Loa
Loa Loa or "eyeworm" is a round helminth that is parasitic on subcutaneous fat. A person is infected by the bite of a blood-sucking insect, which is the intermediate host of the parasite.
Once inside the human body, Loa Loa begins to migrate throughout the body, including penetrating the eyeball, brain or nerve tissue.
Vandellia whispered
Unlike other parasites, it belongs to freshwater fish and lives in the Amazon river. A relatively large fish - up to 15 cm long, due to its transparency and eel-like shape, is almost invisible in the water and swims silently towards its prey. Whiskered vandellia can swim into the human urethra, attach to the walls of blood vessels and suck blood, literally eating the owner from the inside. You can only get rid of such parasites through severe surgery.
Anyone can become infected with parasites; hundreds of thousands of dangerous parasites await each of us: in water, soil, on tree leaves, in public transport, seafood, on fresh vegetables and fruits. Therefore, it is very important to observe all hygiene and hygiene rules and teach children the rules of personal hygiene as early as possible.
The entry of most parasites into the human body occurs completely unnoticed; The first symptoms of the disease appear only a few weeks or months after infection. Symptoms of parasitosis can be different: from lethargy and mild headache to sudden deterioration in condition, fever and hemoptysis.
Only constant monitoring of your health, frequent medical examinations and caution when visiting tropical countries will help you avoid infection with the most terrible parasites or, at least, diagnose such infections in time.