Prevention of intestinal helminthes infection

According to a survey by the National Institute of Malaria - Parasitology - Insects, in our country, it is estimated that about 60 million people are infected with roundworms, 40 million are infected with hairworms and 40 million are infected with hookworms. Intestinal helminths cause minor harms to humans and are a serious problem of community health.

The development of intestinal helminths is very different for the subjects (children, women .) and depends on the characteristics of the occupation. The degree of severe or mild intestinal worms depends on parasitic worms, the number of worms infected with the ability to occupy food and their toxicity, degree Do not let children play in unsanitary places to avoid intestinal helminthes infection. (Photo: myweb) infection, tolerance level for intestinal worms of each individual.

For roundworms

Clinical manifestations in people infected with ascaris are very vague, often only detected based on stool test results, or adult worms outside with feces. The rate of vomiting and defecation of worms is only about 0.5% of people infected ascaris eggs by way of eating. During the period of ascariasis larvae, when passing through the lungs, there may be some signs such as cough, bronchial asthma, rash or abnormal bloody sputum. If for some reason, roundworm larvae reside in the liver, brain, spinal cord, eyes, kidneys . the harm caused by them is difficult to measure. When adult worms parasitize in the intestine with an amount of 5-6 children, there may be signs of indigestion 'worms', stiffening with each bowel pain. If infected with multiple worms, serious complications such as intestinal obstruction can occur, accounting for 38-87.5%, the number of worms counted in these cases is up to 60. Complications of intestinal obstruction caused by common worms in children (57.7%). In addition, roundworms cause serious complications such as intestinal inflammation, intestinal perforation, cholangitis, gallstones, liver abscesses or worms that enter the empty chambers.

The harms caused by roundworms are caused by their occupation of food, taking vitamins, especially vitamin A in the intestines for development and reproduction. They also secrete regular Askaron, which is toxic to the body. In the gastrointestinal tract, roundworms always stimulate, damage the intestinal mucosa in the form of hypertrophy or loss of cells. Ascaris causes digestive disorders and reduces the ability to absorb nutrients, affecting intestinal fat and protein digestion, leading to malnutrition, especially in children and pregnant women. Every day, 26 roundworms in the intestine can eat 4g of protein out of a total of 35-50g of protein is put into the body. For children infected with roundworms, the body will reduce sugar absorption from rice. If infected about 15 roundworms, the body will lose 13.4% fat, 7.2% protein in the daily diet, so it affects the physical and mental development of children.

For hair worms

If the amount of infection is low, there will be no clinical manifestations. In case of high infection, the intestinal mucosa will be severely damaged and always irritated causing symptoms of nausea, abdominal pain, diarrhea, or a dysentery-like syndrome (going outside many times, mixing blood, nose) . The rectum is inflamed and the rectum is often covered with worms. A lot of hairworm infections will lead to anemia.

Young people are often infected with hairworms, leading to sleep disorders, if prolonged will lead to neurological disorders. In young children will cause growth retardation, mental retardation. The appendix of parasitic hairworms, or themselves, are the agents that cause bacteria to cause appendicitis.

Hookworm / mine disease

Type of hook worms that enter the body through the skin (Photo: scientificpsychic) This type of worms enters the body through the skin, tissue, epidermis, or gastrointestinal infection, through the esophagus to the lungs. People infected for the first time, in the skin of larvae who have passed through, have an atopic dermatitis reaction that causes 'foot-feeding'. At the location of parasites in the duodenum, jejunum or the head of the small intestine, the adult hook / beak clings to the wall of the digestive tract by steaming with a hook or sharp teeth. Worms grab deep under the intestinal mucosa causing ulcers, when being infected with bacteria, the ulcers will become like guava seeds. In the intestine, hook worms / mines often attract nutrients, causing the body to lose iron, reduce hemoglobin, reduce some vitamins A, B1, B2, C . iron ions.

Clinical manifestations are often gastrointestinal disturbances, taste disorders (poor patients), nausea, loss of appetite, abdominal pain in the navel or in the epigastric region such as gastric ulcer, duodenum, bowel movements can be mixed with black blood . The patient feels tired, lethargic, anorexia, heavy lower limbs when walking. An outstanding symptom in people with hookworm disease is anemia. Severe anemia, in children and pregnant women, anemia can develop frantically leading to death. While sucking blood, worms also secrete substances that slow blood clots, leading to prolonged blood loss. These toxins also destroy foods rich in protein, fat, and sugar, which make patients lose their vitality and ability to work. Children are stunted, slow growing, pregnant women are prone to miscarriage or stillbirth.

Preventing intestinal helminthes disease

- Use worm medicines to treat diseases. There are currently a number of commonly used helminths that are effective in treating all three types of worms: levamisole (decaris, hacaris .); mebendazole (vermox, Fugacar .); albedazole (zentel, alzental .); pyrantel pamoate (combantrin, anthel .).

- Regular total sanitation to destroy worm eggs and larvae in the development stage in the environment (mainly in soil environment). Preventing the possibility of reinfection of intestinal worms into the body.

- Strengthen education and communication to improve people's understanding of intestinal helminths so that people are conscious of participating in prevention and re-infection of worms.

- Bringing prevention of helminths into the plans and action strategies of the health sector.

Doctor QUOC DONG