The most common type of helminthic infestations transmitted from person to person is the pinworm - the smallest nematode of milky white color( pictured).The length of males and females varies. The male is smaller, only 2-5 mm in length, the female is three times larger. The helminth is spindle-shaped, the body of the round worm ends with a pointed tail. In males, it is slightly dull and at the end slightly bent into a hook. The pinworm has a mouth opening, three lips, an esophagus of cylindrical shape and an anus. Closer to the tail, it expands and takes the shape of a bulb. It is this site together with the vesicles that form the apparatus by means of which the worm sucks to the wall of the intestine.
Eggs of pinworms enter the human body orally, they easily bypass the aggressive environment of the stomach and settle in the lower part of the small intestine, crawl into the colon of the colon and settle there to continue their life cycle. In the intestine only the females are parasitic, the males die after fertilization of the females and are carried out together with the feces through the anus. The female intestinal pinworm lives for about two months. During this time, it reproduces from one and a half to seven thousand eggs. They lay it only at night around the anus. Six hours after laying, the pinworm eggs become invasive. If they again get into the host's organism by contact-household way, a repeated self-infection will occur. It is this that causes the severe form of enterobiosis, which can provoke even a lethal outcome.
Eggs of pinworms( as they look in the photo), getting into the stomach, and then into the small intestine, are exposed to digestive juices. It is they who release the larvae from the shell. They, having passed two three molts, are ready for reproduction. The cycle ends.
Development of pinworms in the intestine
The pathogenesis of enterobiasis has been well studied.
- Pinworms, clinging to the mucous membrane, damage its integrity. Irritation affects both motor and secretory function of the digestive tract, so intestinal enterobiosis is often accompanied by gastritis or enteritis.
- The largest females, boring the walls of the intestine, penetrate deep into the inner layer by two thirds of their body. As a result, inflammation forms around the affected area. The longer the invasion lasts, the more pinworms accumulate inside the small and large intestine, the more severely the pathological process proceeds, the more itching in the anus. When the pinworms penetrate through the hollow organ and settle on the appendix, appendicitis will arise.
- If the pinworms lay eggs in the folds of the anus, the patient experiences terrible itching. From frequent combing of the anus, its thin skin bursts, paraproctitis or rectal fistulas occur.
- In people infected with pinworms, experts often mark dermatitis, eczema around the anus, which can spread far beyond the anus and perineum.
- Another danger of intestinal enterobiasis is ectopic migration of pinworms. Getting inside the vagina, parasites provoke the appearance of vulvitis and endometritis. When such diseases are diagnosed in children, they signal a complex dangerous situation that requires immediate attention and treatment.
- Diagnosis of intestinal enterobiasis in children causes suppression of post-immunity against measles, diphtheria, and other dangerous infections. In addition, the presence of pinworms inside the intestine and the anus has a negative effect on the nervous system of the immature organism. The invasion suppresses the intellect, worsens the child's behavior, she becomes guilty of the patient's strong irritability, his absent-mindedness and memory impairment. Itching in the anus improves the emotional state.
To list the consequences and complications, the culprits are able to become pinworms, settled in the intestine or anus of the person, it is possible for a long time. If you consider that worms can easily migrate and rise up into the respiratory tract, that the products of their vital activity slowly poison the body, it becomes clear why one can not ignore the itching in the anus. It is important at the first symptoms to seek help from specialists.
What are the signs of pinworm in the intestine?
The following symptoms may indicate infection:
- Itching in the anus, arising at night.
- Falling of females into underwear.
- Abdominal pain.
- Gastrointestinal disorders.
- Constant nausea.
- Unexplained headaches.
- Vertigo.
- Fast fatigue.
- Memory impairment.
If someone has several of the above symptoms of pinworms, it is an occasion to consult a helminthologist. It is he who is able to choose an effective treatment regimen, given the severity of the invasion.