Today, diseases caused by a variety of protozoa and helminths are very common.The danger of such diseases lies not only in the complications and dysfunctions caused by protozoa and helminths in the human body, but also in the difficulty of diagnosing the disease due to the similarity of symptoms to various non-parasitic diseases.
Worms and protozoa cause:
- Gastrointestinal disorders (constipation, diarrhea, vomiting);
- allergic skin reactions;
- systemic poisoning;
- muscle and joint pain;
- Dehydration.
To avoid diagnostic errors and prescribing inadequate treatment options (which at best are ineffective and at worst can cause complications), you should determine exactly the type of worm and the extent of its infection in the body.
Routes of infection of protozoan helminths
All worms enter the body from the outside.The same is true for protozoan worms.In the environment, they live in soil and water bodies.In addition to not washing your hands and eating poor quality food, you can become infected at home through contact with carriers.
The primary mechanism of any infection is usually oral feces, that is, the person simply swallows the eggs with food, water, and rarely, some helminth infections are caused by the bite of an infected insect.
Protozoan worms, which live in humans, belong to the category of single-celled organisms.The infection is called protozoa.Depending on the type and extent of the invasion, the course can be severe and even lead to death of the patient.
What worm is called a protozoa?
Protozoan worms can have bodies of constant shape (ciliates and flagellates) and variable bodies - clear representatives of amoebas.Their size is very small, ranging from 4-5 microns to 1-3 mm.The cells of these microorganisms usually have multiple nuclei.The organs of movement are pseudopodia, cilia and flagella.Depending on the species, the reproduction process occurs through halved or complex sexual reproduction.
To protect themselves from adverse external conditions and further spread, protozoan worms can turn into cysts, which are cells covered with a protective membrane.This allows them to transition from a quiescent cyst to an active state if they enter a favorable environment.
Many times, the host's body doesn't even notice the native worm inhabiting it.In other cases, infection results in death of the host.For example, certain antelope species in Africa are permanent "hosts" of trypanosomes.Tsetse flies are carriers of these worms, and if bitten by tsetse flies, they can infect people and cause sleeping sickness, which is known to be life-threatening.
The most studied protozoan worm
Parasites in the human body belonging to the class Giardia:
- Giardia is a parasite that usually lives in the intestines, bile ducts, and livers of vertebrates (humans and animals).They can be spread through food, water and other factors.This group of protozoa is the cause of diseases such as giardiasis, a dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract, or small intestine.Many people infected with Giardia do not experience any noticeable symptoms.
- Leishmania is a protozoan worm transmitted by mosquitoes.People are more likely to be infected with leishmaniasis after being bitten by insects.Symptoms of the disease include damage to the skin, mucous membranes, and some internal organs; fever and anemia are often symptoms of the disease.
- Trypanosomes are protozoa transmitted by insects.This disease causes trypanosomiasis when the body becomes infected.The course of this disease is long.Depending on the type of trypanosome, different systems and organs are affected.
- Amoebic dysentery is a parasite of the intestines.Invasion occurs in the form of tetranuclear cysts.Although Amoeba dysenteriae is almost ubiquitous, the most common cases of infection occur in tropical countries.Amoebiasis are the cause of the infectious protozoal disease (amebiasis) in humans.The clinical manifestation of the disease is ulcerative colitis, which is characterized by recurrence and exacerbation.There are also cases of extraintestinal amoebiasis - these protozoan worms spread from the intestines to other organs and even reach the skin.The latest form of this disease is called cutaneous amebiasis - clear signs of ulcerated necrosis are observed on the buttocks and perineum.
- Trichomonas cause trichomoniasis.Currently, several subspecies of Trichomonas have been studied.Intestine, its parasitic site is in the large intestine, and worms will not cause any special damage to the intestines.The parasitic area of urogenital Trichomonas, as the name suggests, is the urogenital system.The infection occurs through sexual contact.This subspecies of protozoa is the cause of diseases such as trichomoniasis.This infectious disease manifests itself as an inflammatory phenomenon in the genitourinary system.Trichomonas oralis lives in the mouth and poses no danger to humans.
The sporozoal species of protozoa are represented by Plasmodium and Coccidia:
- Plasmodium falciparum, the mosquito-borne cause of malaria, is a protozoan microorganism.It lives in the blood.People infected with this parasite suffer from malaria and experience symptoms such as hypochromic anemia, fever, and enlargement of organs such as the liver and spleen.
- Coccidia are protozoa that live in the intestinal epithelium of many animals.Many species of coccidia are the causative agents of coccidiosis.In humans, the disease occurs with mild intoxication and symptoms of gastroenteritis or enteritis.
Ciliates: balantidia.This protozoa, which lives in the large intestine, is the cause of diseases such as ciliate dysentery (balantidiasis).
Diagnosis and treatment of protozoal helminths
Many times, when worms appear in the body without symptoms, the disease goes undiagnosed for a long time.Invasion can be suspected by specific symptoms and can only be detected through laboratory tests of stool, urine, blood, and fluids obtained from punctures of various organs and systems.
In medical practice, there are general principles for treating protozoal infestations:
- antiparasitic drugs;
- nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs;
- detoxification drugs;
- When secondary bacterial infection occurs, antibiotics are administered accordingly.
Doctors prescribe specific treatments based on the type of protozoal worm and the extent of the infection.