What parasites can live in the human body and how to properly fight them?

Before starting treatment for parasites, it is important to determine exactly which type is present in the body.This is necessary for choosing effective treatment methods, because most drugs are designed specifically to eliminate a certain type of helminth.

Are worms protozoa?

Sometimes you can hear the phrase that the patient is infected with protozoan worms.You must understand that protozoa are exclusively unicellular microorganisms, and in extreme cases they organize colonies.But they are never multicellular, like worms and helminths.

In protozoa, all processes take place inside the cell cytoplasm and cell nucleus, while in worms, the anatomical organization is much more complex: they have differentiated organs that perform special physiological functions.Therefore, it is fundamentally wrong to classify worms as protozoa.

Sometimes helminths are called protozoan parasites in relation to insects: bedbugs, lice, etc., since the latter are much higher on the evolutionary scale.In this interpretation, the name of worms as protozoa is acceptable.

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The most common parasites

The most common endoparasites are, of course, helminths (worms), which, according to various sources, infect more than 80% of the world's population.

A huge number of these parasites are divided into the main types:

• nematodes - roundworms (roundworms, pinworms, trichinella, whipworms, etc.);
• cestodes - tapeworms (tapeworms, pig and beef tapeworms, echinococci, etc.);
• trematodes - flukes (liver, blood, lungs, as well as flukes that live in the intestines).

Sometimes you can find a more general classification, according to which all types of human parasites are divided into:

• luminal (intestinal), parasitic in the intestines;
• tissues, localized in other organs and tissues.

Let's look at a brief description of the most common types of helminths.

roundworms (nematodes)

• Roundworms are the most common roundworms, 20 to 40 cm long, they parasitize in the small intestine, but first migrate in the human body, affecting the circulatory and respiratory systems.In addition to the intestines, these parasites can be found in the liver and gall bladder, heart and lungs.A common symptom of ascariasis is an allergic reaction.
• Pinworms are small worms up to 1 cm, which affect the intestines and lead to enterobiasis with gastrointestinal disturbances, exhaustion, sleep disorders, etc.A characteristic sign of the presence of pinworms is itching in the anus, where they lay their eggs.
• Trichinella - these microscopic worms (their size is only a few millimeters) lead to serious diseases - trichinosis, which can lead to death if left untreated.Adult species live in the human body in the muscles (respiratory, facial, etc.), causing muscle pain, fever, swelling and allergic skin rashes.
• Whipworms are small worms (up to 4.5 cm long, with the front part of the body

in the form of threads), whose larvae cause trichuriasis with diarrhea, acute abdominal pain and other symptoms resembling appendicitis.Due to the intoxication of the organism, anemia develops.

tapeworms (cestodes)

• A broad tapeworm, whose body length reaches 10 m, leads to the development of diphyllobothriasis with nausea, weakness, vomiting, unstable stool, asthenia and anemia.
• Pig tapeworm has a length of 3 to 8 m, parasitizes mainly in the small intestine and causes two diseases at once: taeniasis with dyspeptic, astheno-neurotic and abdominal syndromes and cysticercosis with intoxication, intestinal, allergic and respiratory syndromes.Depending on the location of cysticercosis, the muscles, brain, heart, eyes, etc. are affected.
• Bovine tapeworm, which can reach a length of up to 18 m, causes taeniarhynchiasis and is considered one of the most dangerous types of worms.If deworming is not done, it can live in the human body for up to 18-20 years!Localized in the large intestine, it causes strong intoxication with waste materials, as well as diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, stomach pains, anemia, allergic reactions and problems with the nervous system.
• The dwarf tapeworm, only 1.5-5 cm long, is the source of hymenolepiiasis with dyspeptic, painful and astheno-neurotic syndromes, which primarily affect the digestive and nervous systems of the body, as well as the liver.
• Echinococcus is considered the smallest tapeworm - its length is from 2.5 to 8, rarely 9 mm, but infection with it has terrible consequences in the form of damage to the liver and lungs, where cysts and tumors are formed, causing dysfunction of these organs.

Fluke worms (trematodes)

• Liver fluke, or liver fluke, is shaped like a leaf, 30-50 mm long and 8-13 mm wide, and has teats.It damages the lining of the liver and, clogging the bile ducts, can completely block the flow of bile.It can lead to cirrhosis, jaundice and liver cancer.
• Cat (Siberian) fluke, or cat fluke, is a flatworm 4-13 mm long.Localization - ducts of the gall bladder, liver and pancreas.It causes opisthorchiasis with the development of gastritis, ulcers, pancreatitis, cholecystitis, and even liver cancer, which can be fatal.
• The lung fluke has an egg-shaped, red-brown body with small spines 7.5 to 12 mm long and 4-8 mm wide.It affects the lungs, causing inflammation, exudative pleurisy, focal fibrosis and lung cancer.After penetrating the brain, it causes encephalitis and meningoencephalitis.
• Schistosomes (blood flukes) are dioecious worms 1-2 cm in size, whose eggs cause enlargement of the liver, spleen and lymph nodes, formation of polyps in the intestines, diarrhea, granulomatous inflammation, which leads to bladder cancer.

The diseases they cause

The most dangerous parasites that live in the human body can cause various diseases.Very often, the disease caused by a certain parasite has the same name.So, different types of parasites in the human body can cause the following diseases:

• certain parasites inside humans (flukes) cause trematodes;
• Cestodoses occur when they are infected with tapeworms;
• if an adult or a child has roundworms in the intestines, then nematodes are diagnosed;
• leeches cause hirudinosis;
• Anctocephalosis is caused by acanthocephalans.

However, parasites in the human body can affect multiple organs.Depending on the location of the parasite in the human body, the following parasitic diseases are distinguished:

1. When the eyes are affected, onchocerciasis, demodicosis, cysticercosis and myiasis may occur;
2. Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract caused by single-celled parasites and helminths are ascariasis, trichinosis, hookworm, enterobiasis, intestinal myiasis and methagonimiasis;
3. Brain diseases - echinococcosis, toxoplasmosis, alveococcosis and cysticercosis;
4. Dermatological diseases – demodicosis, pediculosis, scabies, pulicosis, thrombidiasis, phthyriasis;
5. Lung pathologies - echinococcosis, ascariasis, acariasis, alveococcosis, tominxosis, etc.;
6. Liver diseases - opisthorchiasis, alveococcosis, echinococcosis, clonorchiasis;
7. In the mouth, ears and oral cavity, parasites can cause different types of myiasis;
8. Pathologies of the heart - dirophilia and echinococcosis;
9. Diseases of the genitourinary system – alveococcosis, urate myiasis, echinococcosis;
10. Vascular pathologies – filariasis and schistosomiasis.

Flatworms

Parasitic flatworms, or flukes (flukes), have a characteristic leaf-shaped body shape.Their structure is quite organized - they have a digestive, excretory and nervous system.They change their hosts during their life cycle.

The following species have become widespread:

1. Siberian fluke (cat fluke), or opisthorchis.Most often, the infection occurs through raw fish, which leads to the appearance of a rather dangerous disease - opisthorchiasis.Parasites reproduce very quickly, which can cause serious consequences.The worms have a yellowish shade, and their length can exceed 12 m.Fixing themselves in the human body, these parasites cause internal bleeding, obstruct the outflow of bile and cause pancreatic dysfunction.Dangerous consequences: purulent cholangitis, achilles, cholangiocarcinoma.

2. Liver fluke.The intermediate host is cattle, and people become infected by eating poorly processed meat from infected animals.As a result of the infection, the disease fascioliasis develops.These worms are relatively small in size (no more than 5-6 cm), but they can cause dangerous pathologies: liver abscesses, cholangitis, hepatitis.Parasite larvae can spread throughout the body through the blood.
3. Schistosoma.The worm is able to settle in blood vessels, consuming blood components.As a result of its vital activity, the development of varicose veins and tumor formations is possible.The main symptom is intense general intoxication.

In the human body, you can find a huge number of different parasitic worms that can stay in different internal organs.All of them cause chronic diseases that can cause severe pathologies.If signs of helminthiasis of any kind appear, you should consult a doctor to begin adequate treatment.

Bull tapeworm

Bovine tapeworm can reach a length of up to 12 m.It is a hermaphrodite that can produce more than 100,000 eggs, which are excreted in the feces.Eggs fall into the soil, then onto plants, and these plants are eaten by livestock.In the animal's body, the eggs become larvae, which are localized in the muscles.If a person eats contaminated beef, the larvae enter the intestines.Larvae are not transmitted from person to person.

Adult worms have a head with four nipples, a neck, and a segmented body.The number of segments is constantly growing;mature segments can be separated from the worm and crawled out of the human intestine.

Bull tapeworm

Symptoms of the disease are nausea, vomiting, dyspeptic disorders, increased secretion of saliva, dizziness, weakness, nervousness, fatigue, abdominal pain of unknown localization, allergies, fluctuations in appetite.

In order to remove the bovine tapeworm from the body, there is a scheme consisting of 3 phases: preparatory (cleansing the body), treatment with antiparasitic drugs, recovery (diet, herbal medicine).

Tapeworms

Tapeworms, or cestodes, include various flatworms, whose length can range from 2 mm to 10-12 m.The body of such parasites has a specific structure - numerous segments, neck and head with rubber cups (hooks) for attachment to walls.The cestode is a hermaphrodite, and the eggs are located in segments.The worm absorbs nutrients through the entire surface of the body.

The following common types of tapeworms are distinguished:

1. Alveococcus.They can cause cholangitis and abscess, as well as spread to the spleen, muscles and brain.
2. Tapeworms.Bovine tapeworms cause the disease teniarchinosis and are usually found in the small intestine.Serious complications - cholecystitis, intestinal obstruction, appendicitis.This worm can lead to the following consequences: atrophy of the intestinal mucosa, Gunther's glossitis, leukopenia.

Protozoan parasites

Toxoplasma gondii is a type of parasite whose main host is cats.They can be worn by both warm-blooded animals and humans.The disease caused by toxoplasma is called toxoplasmosis.The course of the disease is mild, with the exception of damage to the fetus in the mother's womb during pregnancy, which creates serious consequences for both the mother and the fetus, even death.

An amoeba is a simple single-celled organism that is considered one of the first creatures that lived on Earth.The disease caused by amoeba is called amebiasis.Intestinal infection, with a dominant ulcerative lesion of the large intestine with the appearance of bloody diarrhea, possible formation of secondary intestinal lesions, with a tendency to be chronic.

Malaria plasmodium is the simplest single-celled creature, in whose developmental cycle man is the temporary host and the mosquito is the permanent host.In the human body, the parasitic plasmodium is represented by 4 types:

• P. malarie – four-day malaria;
• P.vivax - three-day malaria;
• P.ovale - three-day ovale malaria;
• P.falciparum - tropical malaria;

The duration of the interval between explosions depends on the type of pathogen.In addition to all this, anemia develops, because plasmodium affects red blood cells.

Giardia is a pear-shaped protozoan that has two nuclei and four pairs of flagella.The main source is pigs and humans.Giardiasis is a common disease that primarily affects the liver and small intestine.The disease can occur in mild and severe forms.

Trichomonas are flagellated, single-celled, pear-shaped organisms that cause the disease trichomoniasis, are sexually transmitted and affect the genitourinary system.It is noticeable that men and women are affected, but in men the disease is usually asymptomatic.

Trypanosomes are a genus of unicellular flagellated protozoa.Trypanosomiasis causes serious illness, and sleeping sickness is fatal to humans.Trypanosomes are transmitted by bed bugs and tsetse flies.In the host's body, the parasite reproduces under the skin and then enters the lymphatic system and blood.Most pathogens reside in the spinal cord and brain, where they destroy cells and release their toxins.