There are two stages of the infection process caused by ascarids - ascaridosis of the lungs( early stage of infection) and ascariasis of the intestine( late stage).Ascaridosis of the lungs is a disease that does not develop separately, it is always associated with intestinal infection. The cause of the disease in one and the other case is the presence in the human body of roundworms( lat. Ascaris lumbricoides).
With direct contact( human-human), infection never occurs. Parasites can enter the body( primarily into the intestine, then into the lungs), along with unwashed vegetables, fruits and herbs, becausethey may contain soil particles contaminated with human feces containing eggs of roundworms. The use of unboiled water and non-compliance with personal hygiene can increase the likelihood of the disease.
Children under 3 years of age are at particular risk. During outdoor games, it is possible to involuntary licking of dirty fingers or other cases of getting into the mouth of pathogens. Penetration of ascarids in the respiratory tract occurs through the blood from the small intestine. Larvae through the blood vessels first enter the alveoli, while breaking the capillaries and causing inflammation at the sites of hemorrhage. Ascaris in the human lungs is from 7 to 10 days. During this time, having developed and undergoing moulting, it migrates to the alveolar lumen, then into the bronchi and further into the esophagus. At the time of coughing and re-ingestion again enters the digestive tract, where it reaches sexual maturity. Therefore, the appearance of ascarids in the lungs differs from that in case of repeated entry into the intestine.
Clinical manifestations of ascarids in the lungs of
Often, in people who have helminth data in the airway, there are no obvious clinical symptoms at an early stage or they are similar to manifestations of bronchitis. A sick person can complain of a headache, weakness, increased fatigue, high fever, rashes on the skin, reminiscent of hives.
With intensive infection, there are signs of lung damage: pain in the chest, shortness of breath, dry cough. Migrating, the larvae can exit from various openings in the body. So, often recorded cases of the presence of ascarids in the throat or nose, as well as their outwards, where they can be detected with the naked eye. However, the pulmonary stage is short.
Diagnosis of pulmonary ascariasis
For an accurate diagnosis of suspected parasites in the patient's body, the physician can offer the following procedures and tests.
- Stool analysis. If more than two months have elapsed since the moment of infection, during this time the causative agents of the disease managed not only to develop into mature individuals, but also to give offspring. Female ascarids produce more than 150 thousand eggs a day. These eggs migrate through the entire digestive tract and can be seen in the feces by microscopic examination.
- Blood test. The results of the study make it possible to diagnose helminth infection in the early stages, incl.and pulmonary. During the testing of blood serum, the presence of antibodies to these parasites is determined in it. The negative answer is explained by the absence of antibodies, and consequently, there is no infectious infection either. The minus of this analysis is that it is ineffective at late stages of the disease, becausethe produced antibodies disappear from the bloodstream after 3 months.
- Radiation diagnostics. The radiodiagnosis of the thorax in helminthiasis can reveal the presence of infiltrates( tissue densities) in the lungs and often resembles the picture in patients with tuberculosis. In some cases, it is possible to detect the presence of an adult roundworm in the lungs on the X-ray.
How to treat ascaris in the lungs?
The choice of methods and medicines for the treatment of ascaris in the lungs is performed by an infectious disease doctor. In rare cases, the disease ends without any intervention. This is possible in the case when eggs of worms of only one sex have got into the body and, accordingly, reproduction and further infection can not occur. After about 3 months, the life cycle of the roundworm ends and she dies before she leaves her offspring. However, in most cases, medication is prescribed.
If the results of the tests show a significant infection of the body with worms, then anthelmintics are prescribed, aimed at destroying the parasites in the lungs and expelling them. Before starting the use of antiparasitic drugs, it is necessary to conduct symptomatic therapy in order to avoid toxic poisoning of the organism by products of parasite disintegration. The most frequently used Ivermectin( Stromectol), Mebendazole( Vermox), Albendazole( Wormil, Centel) and others. These drugs are used once. During the therapy, there are possible side effects such as abdominal pain and diarrhea. After conducting the course of drug therapy, an additional diagnostic examination( triple feces analysis) is mandatory to confirm that all helminths are expelled from the human body. In the case of detection in the samples of worm larvae, the course of therapy is repeated.
In some cases, ascariasis can lead to severe complications associated with damage to the intestines, bile ducts, liver and other organs. In these cases, surgical intervention may be necessary. However, timely prescribed medication can prevent the development of these negative consequences.