Contents
Pinworms – the most common type of helminths. They parasitize in the human large intestine and cause a disease called enterobiasis. The most vulnerable age category is children of preschool and primary school age. It is they who most often bring helminthiasis to the family, where adults also become infected with pinworms.
What do pinworms look like?
Pinworms (Enterobius vermicularis) belong to the genus of nematodes, that is, roundworms. They can be seen in the feces with the naked eye, these helminths look like pieces of white thread. The length of an adult female is 10 mm, male – 5 mm. The worm has a pointed body, this feature of it formed the basis of the name of the parasite.
One end of the male’s body is slightly twisted, while the female’s distal fragment of the body is bent towards the abdomen. The pinworm is attached to the intestinal wall with a special device that looks like a small suction cup along the mouth opening. Pinworm eggs can only be seen with a microscope. They are oval, convex on one side, and flattened on the other.
Causes of pinworm infection
The main cause of infection with pinworms is contact with a carrier of helminths. Pinworm eggs excreted by a sick person are transferred to their clothes, door handles, household items, animal hair, and the food they cook. Disseminators of helminth eggs in some cases are flies and cockroaches. After contact with things or products containing pinworm eggs, a person transfers them to the mouth, and then to the small intestine.
Both sexes grow from the eggs there, they mate and move to the large intestine to feed. A month later, a sexually mature female pinworm begins to lay eggs, crawling out of the rectum through the anus. The number of eggs in one clutch can reach 15 thousand.
Migration of pinworms in the perianal region causes severe itching. When the patient combs the skin, pinworm eggs get under the nails, they remain on the hands. A person infected with pinworms scatters their eggs throughout their habitat. Under long nails, on unwashed hands, there can be thousands of eggs at the same time. They get on the bed, dishes, food, underwear and clothes of other people.
Symptoms of pinworms in adults
When infected with pinworms not from a family member, but from an outsider, an adult usually has a small number of helminths. In this case, the symptoms of pinworms are felt as a slight discomfort, or completely absent.
In this case, it is necessary to observe simple hygiene rules:
Thorough hand washing before eating and after using the toilet;
Change of underwear twice a day;
Daily thorough hygiene of the perianal area.
Then self-infection can be avoided, since hygiene measures deprive pinworms of the opportunity to multiply. Adult helminths live for several weeks, after which they die of old age and are removed from the body. If there is a person infected with pinworms in the family, then it is very difficult for all other members of the family to avoid constant reinfestation.
With a massive infection, the main symptom in adults is itching around the anus, which intensifies at night or in the evening, when female pinworms come out to lay eggs.
Without treatment and in case of insufficient hygiene, as well as with regular contact with sources of invasion (infected people), the number of pinworms in the body will increase, and the itching will become very severe.
A patient with pinworms combs the anus area, cracks, abrasions, scratches appear on the skin. Accession of a bacterial infection leads to dermatitis, inflammatory processes. In this case, more complex and prolonged treatment of helminthiasis is required.
Pinworms in adults provoke the following intestinal disorders: dysbacteriosis, constipation or diarrhea, inclusions in the form of mucus or blood in a mushy stool. With a large accumulation of pinworms in the caecum, in combination with a bacterial infection, intestinal inflammation and exacerbation of appendicitis can occur.
Consequences of untreated enterobiasis:
Allergic manifestations;
Increased irritability;
Intoxication of the body;
Fast fatiguability;
Sleep disorders (insomnia, difficulty falling asleep);
headache, dizziness;
Endometritis and vulvovaginitis in women due to pinworms entering the genital tract;
Irritation of the peritoneum, manifested by pain in the navel.
With a long-term invasion in blood tests, an increase in the concentration of eosinophils and a decrease in hemoglobin levels are diagnosed.
Diagnosis of shingles
Pinworms do not lay their eggs in the intestines, but in the anus, so a stool test for egg content is not used to diagnose pinworms. The most informative method for determining helminthiasis is scraping. Its implementation is not difficult, it can be done with a cotton swab lubricated with petroleum jelly, or by applying adhesive tape to the anus.
But even such an accurate method as scraping can give false negative results. The reason for this is that female pinworms are unable to lay eggs daily. More reliable results are obtained after a three-fold analysis, moreover, at least 2 weeks should elapse between the second and third scrapings. If the family has children attending a children’s group, examination of all family members is mandatory.
Treatment of shingles
Self-medication is unacceptable. Therapy is carried out only under the guidance of a helminthologist or infectious disease specialist. He will take into account the contraindications of drugs, accurately calculate the dosage. Any anthelmintic agent has a toxic effect and requires caution in use.
Preparations for the treatment of pinworms:
Levamisole is an analogue of Decaris (70 rubles), the drug has the properties of an immunomodulator;
Mebendazole – analogues Vormin (20 rubles), Mebex, Vermox (100 rubles), Telmox;
Pirantel (up to 50 rubles) – an analogue of Helmintox (up to 120 rubles);
Carbendazim – analog Medamine;
Nemozol – a remedy with a powerful anthelmintic effect, is used for combined invasion or severe enterobiasis;
Piperazine – acceptable for lactation and pregnancy (up to 25 rubles).
Most drugs are designed for a single dose of a therapeutic dose, but for greater effectiveness, you should not take stool-thinning agents the day before. Usually, antihelminthic medicines are taken in the morning, so dinner on the eve of treatment should be light.
In the evening on the day of taking antiparasitic tablets, a laxative should be taken to completely remove pinworms from the intestines. The treatment of pinworms is carried out again after 2 weeks in order to destroy those individuals that could appear from the eggs during this time.
Simultaneously with the remedy for helminths, antihistamines are taken:
Born;
Loratadine;
Cetrin.
They will help to avoid skin itching, scratching and skin damage. This precaution will reduce the spread of pinworm eggs on the body and clothing. For the same purpose, a soda enema is used: for half a liter of boiled water, you need to take 1 tsp. baking soda.
During the treatment of pinworms, all family members should carefully observe the following rules:
Change underwear twice a day, previously ironed with a hot iron;
Cut nails short;
Wash your hands frequently with soap and disinfectant solutions;
Daily wet cleaning of the apartment, disinfect the toilet.
If these rules are not followed, medication treatment will not lead to the desired result. Surrounding the patient, members of his family will become infected again and again.
In addition to medicines, you can use the treatment of pinworms with folk remedies, although it does not replace medicines. The simplest and most affordable method is the use of pumpkin seeds. A gray-green film on pumpkin seeds has a therapeutic effect. Before such treatment, you need to do an enema every morning for 2 days in a row, and drink a saline laxative in the evening. Pumpkin seeds (300 g) are ground and mixed with honey (100 g). The mixture is eaten on an empty stomach, after 4 hours an enema is made and a laxative is taken. You can only eat after a bowel movement.
Preventive measures
In order not to expose yourself to the danger of enterobiasis, it is enough to follow the hygiene rules:
Thorough and prolonged hand washing;
Hygienic shower;
Washing vegetables and fruits (first they are washed with running water, then rinsed with boiled water).
If a sick person infected with pinworms appears in the family, a general cleaning is carried out in the house or apartment. All household and interior items available for washing with soapy water are thoroughly washed. Underwear and bed linen, clothes are washed at the highest possible temperature. Linen is changed daily, nails are cut short.
Pets are not carriers of pinworms, but helminth eggs may remain on their fur. Therefore, in the house of a patient with enterobiasis, cats and dogs should be thoroughly washed.
Prevention of enterobiasis without consulting a doctor and conducting a preliminary diagnosis is unacceptable, since antiparasitic agents are toxic to the human body.