Ascariasis is considered a fairly common disease. Many people have had this parasitic illness, but very few people know that it can cause serious health problems. Why are ascarids dangerous? They often cause the appearance of such diseases as pneumonia, appendicitis, cholecystitis. Another frequent complication is the intestinal obstruction. Round worms cause many diseases and thereby cause great harm, so this disease must be treated.
For children, this disease poses a greater danger than for adults, because their immunity is weaker and all symptoms are more pronounced. In adults, this dangerous disease can be asymptomatic, they may not guess for a long time that the worms are parasitic in their body. However, with a massive infection, the symptoms are always pronounced.
In some cases, parasites can damage the organs so severely that after the ascaridosis the patient will have to recover for a long time. Recognize this disease can be on the characteristic symptoms. There are only two phases of development of these worms in humans, they can be distinguished by symptoms.
What is dangerous for ascarids for humans? For example, the migratory phase, when larvae through the intestinal walls penetrate into the blood stream and enter different organs, is characterized by the following symptoms: fever, cough, wheezing and allergies. All these signs appear about two weeks after infection, when the larvae reach the lungs.
Harm to ascaris is obvious, they injure organs tissues, for example, accumulating in the lungs, they cause inflammation, resulting in a cough and sputum, which may contain blood veins. Very often people take these symptoms of helminthic invasion for a cold and are treated not for that disease. The children's organism often reacts to the migration of larvae by allergic reactions. Usually this phase lasts about two weeks, and then another begins.
With massive infection, ascarids are very dangerous for humans, and if there are few worms, the disease can cause the patient some discomfort. For example, the intestinal phase, when the larvae get into the mouth with sputum, and then swallowed again by a person and again enter the intestine, is characterized by certain symptoms. Worms in this phase no longer travel throughout the body, but grow and actively multiply in the intestine.
Consequences of ascaridosis
The disorders caused by ascarid in the human body can be irreversible. That's why you need to carry out treatment on time in order not to start the disease. Recognize this parasitic disease in the intestinal stage can be on the following symptoms: nausea, pain in the abdomen, discomfort in the throat. Due to a lack of nutrients in case of massive infection, anemia can begin in a person. The patient begins to complain of weakness and poor state of health, insomnia, irritability, as a rule, appetite changes. Rarely, but still there are various visual impairments, for example, photophobia and a change in the size of the pupils. Ascarids in children can cause serious consequences, with intensive infection the child may begin to lag behind in mental and physical development.
Consequences of ascaridosis can be very dangerous. For example, annually about 9 thousand people die from complications caused by this parasitic disease. Most of these deceased people are children who live in underdeveloped countries where hygiene is not respected. Ascarids are dangerous because they can migrate through the body and penetrate into different organs. They were found in the liver, in the spleen, in the heart, in the lungs, in the brain and even in the eyes. They not only injure organs, but also poison them with the products of their vital activity.
Complications of ascaridosis
The most common complication of ascaridosis is the intestinal obstruction. A clump of worms closes the lumen of the organ, and if a person is not provided with medical assistance on time, he will die. Often because of worms there is perforation of the intestine, that is, a through hole in the organ, which can lead to peritonitis, which often leads to death. And if the helminths get into the appendix, then there will be an attack of appendicitis.
In addition, worms can crawl into the bile duct and cause jaundice or an attack of acute cholecystitis. With pancreatic damage, pancreatitis can occur. Ascarids are dangerous with intensive infection, if there are few helminths in the body, then the disease can make itself felt by an easy digestive disorder.
Harm to ascarids
Ascarids often cause various lung diseases, for example, pneumonia, bronchitis, and sometimes bronchial asthma. The pulmonary form of this disease without treatment can become chronic. In this case, the risk of bronchial asthma increases, the periods of remission will be constantly replaced by seasonal exacerbations.
Ascaridosis is dangerous because larvae in the lungs can eventually lead to abscesses and to the stretching of the alveoli. Due to mechanical damage to lung tissue, dangerous bleeding of varying intensity may occur.
During migration, larvae can enter the heart and cause life-threatening complications. Ascarids will cause pain in the heart, may develop ischemic disease. It is very difficult to guess about the presence of parasites in this body, in order to place an accurate diagnosis you need a thorough examination. As a rule, parasites settle in the right ventricle.
Danger of Ascaris in the Brain
Because of this unusual arrangement of the worms, the patient can have a severe headache, namely migraine. If parasites cause special densities in the brain, the symptoms of helminthic invasion may be similar to a malignant brain tumor. Signs of this dangerous disease usually depend on the location of worms, for example, if they are located next to the optic nerve, then vision will deteriorate.
Ascarids in the brain most often cause the following symptoms: dizziness, fainting, convulsions, headache, depression and blood pressure jumps. Surely many people are interested in the question of how the worm is attached to worms? Larvae in the period of migration can get there through the brachiocephalic veins, as well as through the nasopharynx and auditory orifices.
Ascarids can cause serious complications, therefore this parasitic disease can not be ignored, it is necessary to be treated in a timely manner. But it is much more important to follow the rules of helminthiosis prevention, you need to wash your hands before each meal, you can not drink water from questionable sources, and you should also wash fruits and vegetables well. But if you do not follow the rules of hygiene, then after treatment, you can get infected again. Ascaridosis often occurs in young children, so they need an annual examination.