What are the names of worms that can live in the human body?

Worms or helminths are parasites that live, feed, grow and reproduce in the human body, i. e. H. use it to implement their life cycle. According to various statistics, there are 300 to 500 species of worms dangerous to humans in the world. Their prevalence varies from country to country and depends on the level of hygienic culture of the population and the socio-economic development of the region. But even in enlightened European countries, symptoms of helminthiasis occur in a third of residents. Depending on the development cycle, worm larvae can enter the human body in different ways. The names of worms in humans, their varieties, as well as methods of infection, symptoms and methods of treating helminthiasis are information relevant to the majority of the world's population.

What types of worms are there?

Parasites, over many years of evolution, have ideally adapted to live at the expense of other living beings, without arousing suspicion from the immune system for a long time, so the symptoms of worms in humans do not appear immediately and may be completely absent or mildly expressed.

Worms can penetrate the body unnoticed, camouflage themselves, destroy tissues and organs, poison the human body with toxins and live in it for a long time.

Some types of worms are only dangerous to humans, while others are parasitic on animals. Their size varies from microscopic to gigantic (15 or more meters long). About three dozen parasites are common, including unicellular protozoa. Among all the diversity, there are three main groups of helminths, depending on the features of their life cycle:

1. Contact worms- occur only in humans and have a simple development cycle that does not require more than one host. Typical representatives are pinworms; they are the most common intestinal worms in children. Infection occurs in families, children's groups, public places through unwashed hands, household items (toys, books, curtains, etc. ) on which ripe eggs of these worms have fallen, as well as through inhalation of dust.
2. Group of geohelminths– Your eggs must first mature in soil, water or sand. They enter the human body through the mouth with unwashed berries, vegetables or herbs (such as roundworms and whipworms) or through the skin (such as hookworms).
3. Biohelminths– have a complex life cycle with host changes. These worms appear in humans through consumption of poorly washed vegetables or raw water (echinococci), animal meat contaminated with larvae (beef or pork tapeworm), shaved fish and caviar (broad tapeworm), river fish (flukes or liver flukes), or through the bloodstream (Filaria).

Types of worms

All types of helminths are divided into three classes according to morphological characteristics:

1. Nematode class (roundworms)– Roundworms, pinworms, hookworms, whipworms, trichinae. Roundworms are characterized by the presence of different sexes and have different sizes - from 1 cm (female pinworm) to 40 cm (Ascaris).
2. Class of trematodes (usually they are called leeches)– Siberian fluke (cat fluke), schistosomes. They are always biohelminths and hermaphrodites, equipped with various devices for sucking and attaching to organs inside a human.
3. Class of cestodes (type of flatworms)- These are long ribbon parasites. These include the broadband worm as well as the pork and beef tapeworm - it is the largest worm and can grow up to 20 meters long. Flatworms feed on the entire body surface and are hermaphrodites and biohelminths. Echinococcus is considered the smallest representative of the cestodes.

The world of worms is all about great diversity and exceptional chances of survival. The class of trematodes and cestodes consists of 100% parasites, however, roundworms are heterogeneous, there are tens of thousands of species, but not everyone likes to parasitize the human body. Most helminths lay eggs that can survive in the external environment for several months, and Trichinella is a viviparous individual.

In the human body, worms not only live in the intestines, some of them also prefer to live in the liver, lung parenchyma, brain, skin, muscle tissue and even in the eyeballs.

Worms can be long-lived; for example, a cysticercus can live in the brain for many years; The growth of a hydatid cyst takes up to 10 years.

About roundworms

Which worms are most common:

1. Pinworms- live in the lower parts of the small intestine and throughout the large intestine of humans; Females lay eggs around the anus at night, which causes a characteristic sign of enterobiasis in humans - itching. The transmission of worms between people occurs through dirty hands (eggs of these worms are very often found under the nails of children), bedding and household items. The eggs are very light and can be transmitted through the air through dust; they remain viable for up to six months. These are the least poisonous worms. Human feces do not contain them; Diagnosis requires a scraping from the perianal area.
2. Ascaris- a large worm with a curved, hook-shaped end; a fully grown individual can reach a length of up to half a meter. The eggs ripen in the soil and enter the stomach and small intestine along with unwashed berries, vegetables or herbs. The released larvae gnaw through the intestinal wall and penetrate the venous liver vessels. From there they travel with the blood flow to the lungs, to the right parts of the heart, and sometimes to the brain and eyes, and inflammation occurs in these organs. When coughing, sputum with larvae enters the mouth and is swallowed again into the gastrointestinal tract, where mature individuals develop, which lay eggs after a month. These worms are brown or reddish in color because they hijack red blood cells. The lifespan of the roundworm is up to 2 years. To make the diagnosis, the stool is examined for worm eggs.
3. Whipworm- a hair-thin worm, about 5 cm long, with a pointed end, with which it clings to the inner surface of the intestinal wall. The eggs mature in the soil, from where they penetrate the intestines and here the larvae hatch. Whipworms feed on blood and like to remain in the cecum and appendix, often causing inflammation and anemia. Life expectancy is around 3-4 years. To detect this, you need to test your stool for worm eggs.
4. Trichinae- a small round worm that moves between predators and livestock. A person becomes infected with larvae by eating meat; After a few days, an adult trichinella individual forms in the intestine and then gives birth to live larvae. They can infect the entire body via the blood, but prefer the skeletal muscles, where they remain for up to 5 years.

About tapeworms and leeches

What types of worms cause the most harm to the human body:

1. Bull tapeworm (popularly called tapeworm)- considered the largest worm in humans (up to 15-20 meters) with a body in the form of a ribbon of thousands of individual segments, the most mature of which are located in the tail and fall off when the eggs in it mature. These fragments are the size of a human fingernail, they fall to the ground, into the grass and then end up in the bodies of cattle. Humans become infected through the meat of cows. The bovine tapeworm can live in a person's small intestine for up to 10 years; it feeds on the entire surface of the body. The feces are examined for diagnosis.
2. Pork tapeworm– similar to a bull tapeworm, but shorter. When a person becomes infected with larvae, the tapeworm grows in their small intestine; When eggs are infested, the larvae migrate and can attack any organ.
3. Wide tapeworm– Their worm species is flat and more than 12 meters long. A person becomes infected by eating poorly salted caviar, dried or undercooked fish. It can lodge in the small intestine for decades, constantly releasing mature segments containing larvae into the environment.
4. Echinococci- the smallest parasite of the class of cestodes. Its larvae form cysts over the course of several years, which can be localized in various organs and reach a diameter of 10 cm or more. Infection occurs through dogs or sick livestock. The course is characterized by a pronounced clinical picture and the risk of complications.
5. Cat fluke (liver fluke).- a small worm that enters the human body by eating poorly cooked freshwater fish, lives in the lumen of the small intestine, bile and pancreatic ducts, can multiply rapidly and live up to two decades.

Despite the great diversity of species, modern diagnostic methods and the tried and tested test - feces for worm eggs - can be used to determine quite precisely which worm lives in the human body.

Treatment is carried out after confirmation of the diagnosis and prescription by the treating doctor.