Intestinal worms are numerous and take various forms. The most common in France,pinworm, is a small white worm (between 5 and 10 millimeters) that lives in the digestive tract. Its scientific name is Enterobius vermicularis. But there are many others:

            Le tapeworm is due to tænia from pork (taenia solium) or beef (taenia saginata). In France, an estimated 0,5% of the population is infected with taenia saginata. Those affected ate undercooked beef.

            THEhydatidosis of the liver (or hydatid echinococcosis or hydatid cyst) is mainly present in France, in the south east and Corsica. It is transmitted by a parasite of dogs or canines called echinococcus granulosus. The parasite, once in the intestine, crosses its wall to settle in the liver where it causes the formation of cysts. It can also settle in the lungs.

            La liver fluke, transmitted by cattle or sheep contaminating plants ingested by humans, hatches the parasites in the intestine so that they then travel to the liver where they settle.

            L’ascaridiose, linked to the round parasite called ascaris, rare in France and in temperate countries, is very common in tropical areas. It can cause coughing, vomiting and diarrhea. The worm involved can measure more than 10 centimeters. Adult, it lives in the intestine. Its eggs can be found in dirty water or poorly washed food.

All of these parasites need a host organism to live. When they settle in the digestive tract, we speak of intestinal parasitosis.

The diseases caused by intestinal worms can be very varied. Intestinal worms enter the body quite simply through the stuffy. Eggs can be present on food. They can also be ingested by touching a soiled object and then putting your hands in your mouth. Some of these worms live in the intestine (such as tapeworms or tænia) while others pass through the intestine but settle in other places of the body.

The rest of this sheet dealing with intestinal worms will be devoted to pinworms, intestinal worms living in the digestive tract. For information on tapeworm caused by taenia, see the file tapeworm.

Focus on pinworms

Pinworm infections are very common. Very often they do not cause any symptoms. Some people suffer from itching around the anus. The worms are thin and white, small in size, between 3 and 12 mm. Females lay eggs which will lodge around the anus, which can cause this anal itching.

Pinworms particularly affect children and. They pass the eggs to each other. An infected child who has scratched their anus and then did not (or did not) wash their hands properly can touch another child. The latter, by putting his fingers to his mouth, may be contaminated. Contamination can also come through soiled food.

To get rid of pinworms, drug treatment should be taken. It must be accompanied by washing sheets, pajamas and underwear, these objects may contain eggs. It is essential to treat the whole family of an infected person and to renew the intake of drugs two to three weeks after the first intake, in order to be sure to have eliminated all the worms (the swallowed eggs, which hatch in the intestine, can survive for several days in the open).

La a change. of pinworms is simple and effective. It goes through proper hygiene, including regular hand washing.

Prevalence

It is considered that between one in 3 and one in 4 people are carriers of pinworms. This means that everyone is at risk. In children, according to studies, up to 90% of affected children can be observed.

Diagnostic

It is the anal itching caused by pinworms during the night, when the female is laying, that can alert. Treatment should be put in place if there is any doubt, even without certainty. To confirm the diagnosis, there are tests such as the scotch test, which involves applying a transparent tape to the anus and looking under a microscope to detect the eggs of pinworms.

Complications

Pinworms usually do not cause serious complications. Exceptionally, they can cause infection of the female genitals or even inflammation of the vagina or uterus.¹.

Causes

Pinworm infection appears after eggs are swallowed. They go into the intestine and develop there. By scratching the anus, because of the itching, the affected person, quite often a child, can put eggs under their fingernails and then re-contaminate themselves by putting their fingers in their mouth. It can also infect other people.