Finn stage. Tapeworms whose life cycle is not related to the aquatic environment

In everyday life, any objects used by an infected person can serve as carriers of infection. The eggs of the dwarf tapeworm are carried by hand, end up on furniture, door handles, dishes, towels, toys. In the external environment, the eggs of the pathogen live up to 2 days, on the hands of a person up to 4 hours. Therefore, if an invasion is detected, along with treatment, one should strictly observe the rules of personal hygiene, carefully carry out wet cleaning, handle household items, children's toys with boiling water.

The eggs of the pygmy tapeworm (this can be seen in the photo) are round and oval in shape. They are transparent, colorless, inside them there is another shell (oncosphere) with six rudimentary hooks. Eggs are sensitive to moisture and quickly decompose when dried. When heated above +60 ° C, pathogens die in 15 minutes, at temperatures below zero they die within an hour.

Development Features

The entire life cycle of the pygmy tapeworm is 4 to 6 weeks. It can take place entirely (from the stage of infection to the mature worm) in one organism. Such a host for tapeworm is a person.

More specific symptoms occur with massive invasion:

spastic abdominal pain, vomiting;
constant thirst;
sudden weight loss;
convulsions, fainting;
insomnia, anxiety;
pallor, anemia.

The vital activity of flatworms in the human body, their secretions, substances from the decay of damaged tissues cause toxic-allergic symptoms (skin rash, rhinitis, asthmatic attacks, eosinophilia). Mechanical damage from suckers, hooks, ribbed body of mature worms, destruction of villi and mucous membranes by larvae lead to anemia, tissue destruction, and inflammation.

External symptoms of hymenolepiasis are pallor and dryness. skin, weight loss. Children lag behind in physical and mental development, memory decreases. Neurological symptoms include insomnia, irritability, and apathy.

By symptoms, it is impossible to accurately determine that the cause of the disease is dwarf tapeworm. Such symptoms may belong to many other diseases, and sometimes there are no symptoms at all. How is the diagnosis established?

To increase the likelihood of detecting a pygmy tapeworm, a reduced dose of fenasal and a laxative are prescribed before the tests. Fenasal destroys the body of the tapeworm and releases many eggs, which will be easier to identify by microscopic examination. The information content of the study increases by 40%.

Eggs break down rapidly in the environment, so laboratory samples should be examined as soon as possible after defecation. After a few hours, it is already difficult to identify the infection, and the study of dry feces is uninformative.

A sexually mature dwarf tapeworm in each end segment carries up to 180 eggs, a huge amount of them is excreted with feces. Based on the study of the symptoms and a properly conducted examination, the diagnosis is not difficult.

Treatment

The medicine that destroys the dwarf tapeworm is one, but the therapy consists of several important steps.

Preparatory stage

special diet;
drugs to support the liver;
adsorbents for the gastrointestinal tract;
stool regulation;
treatment of comorbidities.

In this way, the body is prepared for treatment with a potent drug and minimizes the possibility of subsequent self-infection and complications.

main stage

4 doses per day, at regular intervals;
1 dose of the drug on an empty stomach 1 time per day;
6 doses per day (2 days after 4).

Various treatment regimens are applicable for invasions of varying severity, their choice depends on the patient's condition, concomitant diseases, the presence of complications, age, and other factors. Only a specialist can choose the most effective dose of the drug and the treatment schedule for a particular case.

Recovery stage

Do not neglect the course of recovery after treatment with antihistamines. It includes support for the liver with hepatoprotectors, restoration of intestinal microflora, prevention of constipation, and intake of vitamins. Conducted to eliminate side effects fenasal, to restore the normal functioning of organs and systems weakened by the vital activity of the pygmy tapeworm.

Anti-allergy therapy

Cyclicity of treatment

Based on the characteristics of the life cycle of the pygmy tapeworm, an important rule in the treatment of hymenolepiasis is cyclicity. The medicine acts exclusively on sexually mature tapeworms, while the larvae continue their development. Therefore, treatment is prescribed by periodic courses, after 5-7 days. The intervals between courses are not accidental, they are consistent with the life cycles of the pygmy tapeworm.

Dispensary observation

After the end of all stages of treatment, the patient is observed by a doctor for another six months. At this time, monthly laboratory tests are carried out. The diagnosis can only be withdrawn on the basis of the negative results of six such studies, regardless of the presence of symptoms. Only then can it be argued that the treatment has helped, the pygmy tapeworm is completely expelled from the body.

Prevention of hymenolepiasis

Be sure to wash vegetables and fruits, boil drinking water. The spread of insects and small rodents in residential buildings and public spaces. Carry out thorough wet cleaning using special disinfectants in crowded places (especially children).

If an infection with a dwarf tapeworm is detected, children are suspended from visiting kindergartens, schools, for the duration of treatment. Infested adults also do not attend work during this period. Timely treatment with subsequent obligatory observation will protect others from infection.

Pork tapeworm in humans, symptoms and treatment of teniasis

Pork tapeworm occurs more often where pig breeding is widely developed. In China, Latin America, Africa and Taiwan, infection of pigs reaches 35% of their total. According to 2017 data, western Ukraine and Belarus are included in the danger zones of animal invasion. In Russia, this disease is often found in pig farms in the Krasnodar Territory.

What is pork tapeworm

Pork tapeworm is a type of tapeworm (worm) that grows to a length of about 4 m.

Helminth larvae in the initial stage of development, called oncospheres, have a spherical shape and are attached to the walls of the intestine with the help of hooks. After they enter the circulatory system and are carried by the blood stream into muscle tissues, where they continue to develop. The next stage in the development of the helminth is Finn or cysticercus. It is still a worm larva, looking like a white, fluid-filled vesicle with an adult head screwed in. In the human intestine, the larva develops into an adult helminth.

Finns - larvae in a late stage of development - cause a dangerous disease of cysticercosis, which affects the brain, muscle tissue and mucous membranes, eyes and the cardiovascular system.

The tapeworm is contagious and can be easily transmitted from animals and other people to humans.

How can you get infected

The tapeworm larvae can be found on unwashed fruits and vegetables. This is especially true for those products that fall to the ground or grow close to it. This type of helminths can also live in the soil. Therefore, before eating food from the garden, it is necessary to thoroughly wash the fruits, preferably with a special antibacterial agent for washing fruits and vegetables.

Pork tapeworm enters the human body through poorly processed meat. More often it is pork that has not passed a sanitary check. Before buying, you should make sure of the quality of the purchased meat and ask the seller for documents on the sanitary procedures performed. Also, infection can occur through contact with a sick person or due to non-compliance with hygiene rules. The main problem for the human body is the toxic waste products of helminths.

Symptoms and signs of pork tapeworm disease

Symptoms of tapeworm in humans, which may indicate the presence of teniasis or cysticercosis:

nausea;
diarrhea or constipation;
general weakness;
headaches and dizziness;
vomit;
sleep disorders;
abdominal pain;
burning and itching of the anus;
weight loss;
violations of the liver;
anemia;
fainting;
belching;
uncomfortable feeling of heaviness after eating;
skin rashes;
irritability and nervousness.

To establish an accurate diagnosis, you need to take a stool test several times at some intervals. The larvae of the tapeworm may not be detected the first time.

Types of diseases

Pork tapeworm is one of the most dangerous helminths that can settle in the human body. The adult of this worm is capable of causing the disease teniosis, which does not endanger human life, but affects the internal organs. Teniasis can occur in latent form. A potential threat to life is the disease of cysticercosis. Consider in detail each of the diseases:

teniasis

A patient with teniasis of a person can be identified by the following signs:

allergic reactions due to toxic substances as a result of the vital activity of the helminth;
intestinal inflammation;
asthenia and neurosis;
lack of appetite, feeling of discomfort after eating;
disruption of the digestive system.

To identify the disease in humans, a number of laboratory tests are carried out, such as fecal analysis, perianal scraping, general analysis blood, x-ray.

Treatment of teniasis should be carried out in a hospital under the close supervision of medical staff. Teniasis can turn into cysticercosis due to damage to the egg shells and oncospheres entering the bloodstream. After the course of treatment, an examination of the intestine is performed. It is also necessary to take a fecal analysis every month for six months to exclude the possibility of a reappearance of the worm in the body.

Cysticercosis

it most dangerous disease occurs due to the ingestion of larvae into the gastrointestinal system, which damage the intestinal mucosa, enter the bloodstream and spread throughout the body. They can settle on the eyes, lungs, heart, spinal cord and brain. Depending on the location of the larvae, treatment is prescribed, which consists in the complete removal of the Finns from the body and the restoration of the functioning of damaged organs.

If, with cysticercosis, the larvae of the worm infect the brain, then this is considered the most dangerous type of the disease.

Finns are not easy to get out of the cortex and membranes of the brain. They can live inside for up to 20 years.

With this disease, a person feels symptoms:

muscle weakness;
depressive state;
hallucinations, delusions;
mental seizures;
migraines, headaches accompanied by vomiting;
violation of the respiratory process;
disruption of the heart.

The disease is diagnosed with the help of studies of cerebrospinal fluid and blood, as well as x-rays, MRI and RSK.

If the spinal cord is damaged by larvae, cysts appear that compress it.

Signs of the disease:

pain in the limbs and back;
pain in the abdomen, chest;
violation in the musculoskeletal system;
paralysis.

Treatment in this case is the same as for brain damage.

Cysticercosis is very dangerous for pregnant women. Finns can cross the placenta and harm the fetus.

There is a risk of fetal death or abnormalities in the development of the child. If the disease is detected in early dates pregnancy, it is often recommended to have an abortion.

Treatment

Before treating the disease caused by tapeworm, the patient takes a laxative;
On the day of the procedure, instead of breakfast, you need to eat, slowly, 300 grams of ground pumpkin seeds with honey;
After 3 hours, take a laxative again or do a cleansing enema and have a snack.

Prevention

To prevent the appearance of pork tapeworm, you should follow some rules:

observe personal hygiene;
choose meat carefully when buying;
cook and fry meat for a long time;
do not try when buying raw foods.

The life cycle of a pygmy tapeworm: symptoms, treatment and photos

Compared with its more famous relatives - bovine and pork tapeworm, which can reach a huge length, the pygmy tapeworm looks small - no more than 5 cm in length. But in this case, size does not matter, and pygmy tapeworm causes intestinal disease in humans and some animals, which is very difficult to cure.

A sick person or animal constantly excretes pygmy tapeworm eggs into the environment with feces. They remain viable in the environment for about two days. Freezing (below -4ºС, duration - about an hour) or heating (above 60ºС, also about an hour) can destroy them, so frozen and thermally processed foods are safe.

Symptoms in humans

Signs of hymenolipedosis are nonspecific, and are caused by its effect on the human digestive and immune systems:

All these signs, and even their combination, are characteristic not only for the dwarf tapeworm, but also for many other intestinal diseases, so it is impossible to make a diagnosis solely on the basis of symptoms.

Dwarf tapeworm: photo

Diagnostic methods and analyzes

Additional tests to determine the degree of damage to the body due to the disease are a general and biochemical blood test, which reflect changes in the general condition of the patient.

How to get rid of the pygmy tapeworm?

Treatment of hymenolipedosis is possible only if hygiene standards are observed - thorough hand washing before eating and after visiting the restroom, regular showers, use of high-quality drinking water and washing food before eating. Rodent control is also important, as they carry disease and contaminate food with excrement.

Folk methods of treatment

The dosage of the drug depends on the age and weight of the patient. The number of courses is determined by the effectiveness of the treatment, which is monitored by fecal analysis.

Treatment of dwarf tapeworm in children has its own characteristics. Firstly, the dosage of the drug is calculated based on the body weight of the child. Secondly, the drugs have age restrictions - praziquantel (biltricide) can be used from the age of four, and phenosal - from any age. Each course of treatment lasts 2-3 days in adults and children.

The danger of the pygmy tapeworm lies in its structure and features of the development cycle. First of all, this is the danger of an allergic reaction, especially during the period of tissue development. Hypersensitivity can be so severe that asthmatic attacks or Quincke's edema may occur.

Secondly, the disease proceeds with damage to the intestinal wall, which threatens to disrupt digestion and absorption. nutrients and intestinal bleeding. Malabsorption syndrome leads to chronic deficient conditions, and intestinal bleeding can be life threatening.

Symptoms of hymenolipedosis are not always pronounced, a sick person may not be aware that he is a source of infection for other people.

Children may not notice the disease, continuing to actively interact with others, so among them the incidence is much higher than in adults. In addition, young children do not always have well-developed hygiene skills.

FINNA

The vesicular stage of the tapeworm.

Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. - Chudinov A.N., 1910 .

FINNA

the blistering stage of the tapeworm, which it goes through in subcutaneous tissue pigs, causing a characteristic disease of these animals.

Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. - Pavlenkov F., 1907 .

finna

(German finne) finca - the vesicular stage of the larval development of many tapeworms, as well as the organism itself at this stage of development; There are 4 types of Finns: cysticercosis - with one head (scolex) screwed into the cavity of the bladder, coenur - with many heads, echinococcus - containing child bubbles with many heads in each, cysticercoid, consisting of a body into which the head is screwed, and a tail .

New dictionary of foreign words.- by EdwART,, 2009 .

finna

Finns, w. [German] Finna] (zool.). A tapeworm larva that usually lives in the muscles of animals.

A large dictionary of foreign words. - Publishing house "IDDK", 2007 .

finna

s, and. (German Finne).
zool. The vesicular stage of larval development of many tapeworms, as well as the organism itself at this stage of development; the same as cysticercus.

Explanatory Dictionary of Foreign Words L. P. Krysina.- M: Russian language, 1998 .

Synonyms:

See what "FINNA" is in other dictionaries:

In biology, the same as Finnish ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

FINNA, Finns, female. (German: Finna) (zool.). A tapeworm larva that usually lives in the muscles of animals. Explanatory Dictionary of Ushakov. D.N. Ushakov. 1935 1940 ... Explanatory Dictionary of Ushakov

Exist., number of synonyms: 4 worm (11) larva (37) finca (11) ... Synonym dictionary

s; and. [German] Finne] Larval developmental stage of a tapeworm; the organism itself in this stage of development. * * * Finn (biol.), same as Finn. * * * FINNA FINNA, in biology the same as Finn (see FINCA) ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Or blisterworm is the stage of development of tapeworms or Cestodes (see Worms, pl. I, figs. 7 10, 22 23 and 3i). F. develops from the so-called six-hooked embryo when it penetrates into the body of a tapeworm specific for each species ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron

G. Tapeworm larva; Finnish V. Explanatory Dictionary of Efremova. T. F. Efremova. 2000... Modern dictionary Russian language Efremova

Finna, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns (Source: “Full accentuated paradigm according to A. A. Zaliznyak”) ... Forms of words

- (biol.), the same as Finnish ... Natural science. encyclopedic Dictionary

Books

, Mark Twain. In the novels about the adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, the writer with great realistic skill painted the life of an American provincial town on the Mississippi, with its musty, bourgeois ...
Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain. In the works about the adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, the writer with great realistic skill painted the life of an American provincial town of the 40s of the last century, with its ...

.(Source: "Biological Encyclopedic Dictionary." Chief editor M. S. Gilyarov; Editorial board: A. A. Babaev, G. G. Vinberg, G. A. Zavarzin and others - 2nd ed., corrected . - M .: Sov. Encyclopedia, 1986.)

Synonyms:

See what "FINNA" is in other dictionaries:

The vesicular stage of the tapeworm. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. FINNA is the blistering stage of the tapeworm, which it passes through in the subcutaneous tissue of pigs, causing a characteristic disease of these animals. Dictionary… … Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

In biology, the same as Finnish ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Exist., number of synonyms: 4 worm (11) larva (37) finca (11) ... Synonym dictionary

G. Tapeworm larva; Finnish V. Explanatory Dictionary of Efremova. T. F. Efremova. 2000... Modern explanatory dictionary of the Russian language Efremova

Finna, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns, Finns (Source: “Full accentuated paradigm according to A. A. Zaliznyak”) ... Forms of words

- (biol.), the same as Finnish ... Natural science. encyclopedic Dictionary

Books

, Mark Twain. In the novels about the adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, the writer with great realistic skill painted the life of an American provincial town on the Mississippi, with its musty, bourgeois ...
Adventures of Tom Sawyer. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain. In the works about the adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, the writer with great realistic skill painted the life of an American provincial town of the 40s of the last century, with its ...

The relevance of taeniasis in the Russian Federation remains at the present time, despite the rather low all-Russian incidence rate. This is due to the presence of individual regions where invasion cases continue to be recorded without a downward trend (Tyva Republic, Kalmykia, Krasnoyarsk Territory, Ural Federal District).

Of particular importance is the prevention of infection with tapeworm and complications of helminthiasis, often leading to disability and disability.

Pork tapeworm (lat. Taenia solium, armed tapeworm) is a helminth, the causative agent and the cause of such human diseases as teniasis and cysticercosis. Refers to (Cestoda).

Show all

1. The structure of the pork tapeworm

Pork tapeworm (pork tapeworm) has a white tape-shaped body about 3 meters long (in rare cases it can reach 6 meters).

Figure 1 - Schematic structure of the pork tapeworm

On the head (scolex) with a diameter of up to 3 mm there are four suction cups, as well as a corolla of special hooks, the number of which is 22-32, for which he was called armed. All these devices help the helminth stick to the wall. small intestine final owner.

Figure 2 - Scolex of pork tapeworm

Each mature segment is usually 11 to 15 mm long and 6 to 7 mm wide. The short neck of the tapeworm performs a "body-forming" function (by budding).

Pork tapeworm is a hermaphrodite, that is, in one individual there are both male and female genital organs. During the growth of the worm, the male reproductive organs are first formed, and then the female. There are no genitals in the front of the body. Sexually mature hermaphroditic proglottids appear only in the middle of the body.

All helminths of the tapeworm class lack the digestive, circulatory, and respiratory systems. The shell of the worm is tegument, roughly speaking, the "skin" of the helminth. The tegument has not only a shaping and barrier function, but also a digestive one.

The nutrition of the worm occurs over the entire surface of the body by pinocytosis (the absorption of useful elements using special holes located on the tegument). The tegument also secretes a special enzyme on the surface of the body, which protects the helminth from digestion in the host's intestines.

The muscular membrane of the pork tapeworm is represented by two layers - the outer (annular) and the inner (longitudinal). The excretory system consists of several longitudinal trunks, interconnected by bridges at the end of each segment. In the final segment, the excretory system is represented by one common opening. The nervous system consists of 6 to 12 strands that run along the body and are connected to each other by commissures.

2. Life cycle

In the cycle of development of the armed tapeworm, two stages can be distinguished: sexually mature (in the body of the final host) and larval (in the body of the intermediate host). The larval stage also goes through several transformations:

1 The first larval stage, or oncosphere, is formed in the egg when it is still in the segment. It is a small ball with a diameter of 10 micrometers, having three pairs of hooks. The oncosphere is covered with a shell, on the surface of which there are sometimes cilia.
2 The second stage is Finn. The larva transforms into a Finn in the intestines of the intermediate host. The Finn of the armed helminth is represented by a cysticercus with a diameter of 7-10 mm. It is a white, pea-sized vesicle filled with fluid and containing a screwed-in head with hooks for attachment.

Humans are the definitive host of the tapeworm.. The source of infection is a sick person, with the feces of which mature tapeworm segments containing eggs come out. The shell of the segments is destroyed in the environment, and their contents fall into the grass and soil.

Intermediate hosts are domestic pigs, which can ingest the eggs of the worm by eating contaminated feed or the faeces of a sick person.

Figure 3 - Morphology of porcine tapeworm eggs

Less often, wild pigs and carnivores can be intermediate hosts. In the stomach of pigs, a six-hooked oncosphere emerges from the eggs, which perforates the wall of the organ and penetrates into the bloodstream. Through the blood vessels, the oncosphere enters various organs, primarily the muscles of the animal.

In them, after a couple of months, the larva takes the form of a Finn of the cysticercus type.. Cysticerci remain in the body of pigs for up to two years, then they die, become covered with calcium compounds and harden (calcification occurs).

Figure 4 - Life cycle of porcine tapeworm (taeniasis and cysticercosis), CDC source

Figure 5 - Geographical prevalence of taeniasis (WHO source)

3. Clinical picture of teniasis

The initial symptoms of invasion begin to appear in humans only in the chronic phase, when the tapeworm grows into a sexually mature individual. Patients complain of weakness, irritability, and appetite disorders. At the beginning of the disease, the appetite increases very much up to bulimia (craving to overeat), while the patient’s weight does not increase, but even decreases, over time, the appetite decreases, and the person’s weight returns to normal and does not change significantly in the future.

Patients experience pain in different parts of the abdomen. Especially often in the right iliac region, when the proglottids pass through the ileocecal valve rich in receptors (Bauhin's valve), which separates the small and large intestines.

Patients are concerned about nausea, vomiting, rumbling in the abdomen, flatulence (painful bloating), periodic increase in stool. Many patients complain of the presence of helminth segments in the feces. Some patients develop glossitis (inflammation of the tongue).

In immunocompromised individuals, neurological disorders, headache, dizziness, fainting, sleep disturbances, and sometimes seizures may join. At later stages, during the life of the worm, an infected person develops allergic skin lesions in the form of urticaria.

A severe and formidable complication of teniasis is cysticercosis, when the finnose stage of the helminth develops in the human body, turning the patient into an intermediate host. A person suffering from a pork tapeworm is always at risk of developing cysticercosis!

4. Cysticercosis

There are two ways in which cysticercosis occurs in humans:

1 complication of teniasis;
2 independent disease.

As a complication of teniasis, cysticercosis can develop when mature segments with tens of thousands of eggs enter the patient's stomach with nausea and vomiting in the order of self-infection (the so-called autoinvasion). Subsequently, oncospheres enter the duodenum, pierce its wall, enter the bloodstream, spread throughout the body and settle in the skeletal muscles, heart, organs of vision, brain and spinal cord, skin and lungs. Invasion can be either single or multiple.

As an independent disease, cysticercosis occurs in humans when they accidentally swallow the eggs of an armed tapeworm when eating dirty vegetables that grow when the soil is fertilized with poorly neutralized sewage, as well as when personal hygiene is not followed. In rare cases, infection with oncospheres of a healthy person occurs through the mouth of a patient with teniasis.

Cysticercosis of the brain is characterized by various symptoms, which depend on the localization of the process. Allocate damage to the cortex, ventricles, base of the brain and mixed lesions. Cysticerci have a toxic effect and cause inflammation of the surrounding nervous tissue and membranes.

Figure 6 - Neurocysticercosis on MRI before treatment (A, B, C) and after it (D, E, F)

Damage to the cerebral cortex is manifested by a mental disorder and an increase in intracranial pressure due to an obstruction to the outflow of cerebrospinal fluid. Mental disorders are presented in the form of agitation, depressive states, hallucinations and delusions. Increased intracranial pressure causes transient headache, vomiting that does not bring relief, dizziness. Patients often develop epileptic seizures.

Among all the ventricles of the brain, cysticerci most often affect the fourth ventricle, where they can safely swim in the cerebrospinal fluid. The defeat of the ventricle is manifested by Bruns' symptom, characterized by the appearance of a sharp paroxysmal headache and vomiting.

The appearance of these symptoms is characterized by a change in the position of the head, so patients are usually in a forced position, which allows them to reduce or avoid these manifestations. There are also violations of the respiratory and heart, rarely - violations of consciousness.

Damage to the base of the brain is manifested by pain in the back of the head or neck, decreased taste, hearing, and vestibular disorders. Sometimes there are sensory and motor disorders, less often - mental disorders.

The mixed form of brain damage has a rather severe course. It is manifested by epileptic seizures of varying severity and gross mental disorders.

Cysticercosis of the spinal cord usually develops when Finn gets from the ventricles of the brain with a current of cerebrospinal fluid. The initial manifestations of the disease include pain in the limbs, girdle pain in the back and abdomen, at chest level. Over time, the symptoms worsen, paralysis, sensory disturbances, urinary and fecal incontinence appear. Sometimes there are fibrillations (uncontrolled muscle twitches).

Isolated cysticercosis skeletal muscle is usually asymptomatic. As a rule, it is discovered by chance.

When the Finn is located in the subcutaneous fat layer, the formation of spherical tumors is observed, which rise above the surface of the skin. When probing such tumors, their cavity character is felt. Most often, tumors appear on the inner surface of the shoulders, on the upper half chest and on the palms.

Cysticercosis of the eye can affect any structure of the organ with the occurrence of uveitis, conjunctivitis, retinitis, retinal detachment. The formation of Finns in the tissues of the eye entails a gradual deterioration in vision up to its complete loss and atrophy of the eyeball.

The defeat of the cysticerci of the heart is manifested by rhythm disturbances. It can be bradycardia (rare heartbeat) or tachycardia (rapid heartbeat). Patients usually do not present other complaints. Very rarely, heart failure occurs.

The presence of cysticerci in the lungs usually does not cause any symptoms. Rarely, patients develop an unreasonable cough with clear sputum, which can persist for a long time. Sometimes streaks of blood appear in the sputum. familiar at times exercise stress may cause mild dyspnea, which resolves after a little rest. However, in most cases, patients do not pay attention to this and do not seek help.

In taeniasis, the prognosis is serious due to the potential for infection with cysticercosis.. With cysticercosis of the skin and skeletal muscles, the prognosis is more favorable, however, the patient should be monitored for a long time. The prognosis for damage to other organs is doubtful, and more often unfavorable.

5. Diagnostic methods

Diagnosis of teniasis and cysticercosis is very difficult, since these diseases. Of no small importance is a detailed questioning of the patient. The place of work of a person, the nature of the food consumed, travel to countryside in the next few months, contact with sick people. Also, patients should be asked about the subject. To do this, doctors usually show on the preparations what the segments of the worm look like.

At a positive result questioning patients are asked to bring the allocated segments to the laboratory for a final diagnosis. It should be borne in mind that some individuals may hide the fact of the allocation of segments. These include children and adolescents, the elderly and food workers.

Laboratory diagnosis of teniasis includes macroovohelminthoscopy: mature tapeworm proglottids are found in the feces of an infected person. The detection of only helminth eggs does not make it possible to establish a final diagnosis, because worm eggs are no different from the causative agent of another helminthiasis - bovine tapeworm.

Figure 7 - Comparative characteristics bovine and pork tapeworm

A complete blood count reveals eosinophilia and leukocytosis, however, such changes in blood counts are usually characteristic of the initial stages of the disease.
The diagnosis of cysticercosis is also based on a survey of the patient. Questioning an infected person is important here, especially for the presence of teniasis in the past.

Of the laboratory diagnostic methods, a general blood test is important when eosinophilia can be detected. Also, the diagnosis of cysticercosis is confirmed using serological research methods: the reaction of binding a compliment to an antigen from cysticerci, the reaction of indirect hemagglutination and enzyme immunoassay are considered more specific.

For the diagnosis of cysticercosis of the central nervous system CT and MRI diagnostics are of no small importance, with the help of which oval formations with a clearly defined shell, sometimes calcified, are detected. The cerebrospinal fluid is also examined, in which lymphocytosis and eosinophilia are found, sometimes an increase in protein, as well as single scolexes.

Cysticercosis of the skin and skeletal muscles is diagnosed by biopsy of tumor-like formations, inside which a helminth larva is found. Sometimes radiography helps to identify the calcified dead Finns.

Cysticercosis of the eye is determined by ophthalmoscopy. It is rare to find cysticercus in the fundus. As a manifestation of increased intracranial pressure in cysticercosis of the brain, congestive optic discs may appear in the fundus.

Cysticercosis of the lungs and heart can be established by x-ray of the chest. The radiograph reveals small rounded shadows with clear boundaries, often calcified. The size of the shadows varies from five to seven millimeters. As a rule, such shadows are scattered over all fields, their number varies from a few to dozens.

A positive blood and/or cerebrospinal fluid test with cysticerci antigen confirms the diagnosis of cysticercosis.

6. Drug therapy

Two drugs have been approved by the CDC for taeniasis: praziquantel (Biltricid) and niclosamide (Fenasal). Praziquantel is usually used in combination with an effective laxative, dosing regimen 5-10 mg / kg body weight once (both in adults and in children). A laxative is usually used two hours after taking the tablets to remove mature proglottids before eggs are released from them (prevention of cysticercosis). Cases of surgical removal of a mature worm from the small intestine are known.

Niclosamide (the drug is currently not registered in the Russian Federation) is a good alternative drug for the treatment of taeniasis. The treatment regimen involves a single use of 2 g of the drug for adults and 50 mg / kg of body weight for children.

The drug of choice for cysticercosis (especially neurocysticercosis) is albendazole in combination with glucocorticosteroids (glucocorticoids) under constant medical supervision.

A recent placebo-controlled, double-blind study demonstrated that treatment of neurocysticercosis with albendazole (400 mg twice daily plus 6 mg QD dexamethasone for 10 days) reduced the number of seizures over a subsequent 30-month follow-up (source CDC).

It is possible to prescribe praziquantel, but its use can provoke the development of an inflammatory process and worsening of symptoms, which is especially dangerous in cerebral cysticercosis.

The principles of treatment of cysticercosis are being developed and improved to this day. Treatment of this complication (or an independent disease) is carried out only in a hospital. Praziquantel is not prescribed for cysticercosis of the eyes and pregnant women.

The use of anthelmintic drugs for calcified cysts is ineffective.

With cysticercosis of the eyes and single cysticerci of the nervous system, surgical treatment is used, in the postoperative period of which praziquantel and glucocorticosteroids are prescribed.

The effectiveness of deworming is established by control studies of feces one to two to three months after the course of treatment.

7. Prevention of helminthiasis

The fight against teniasis includes a complex of biomedical measures. Personal prevention includes observing the rules of personal hygiene and refusing to eat meat that has not passed sanitary and veterinary control and unprocessed meat.

Public prevention is as follows:

1 Observation of livestock slaughter in slaughterhouses and meat-packing plants.
2 Inspection of carcasses and culling.
3 Combating backyard slaughter and sale of meat that has not been subjected to veterinary examination.

Infected meat is subject to technical disposal and processing into products unsuitable for food (fertilizer, soap). If a small number of Finns are found in the meat, then in this case it is allowed to heat it for a long time and sell it as canned food.

Great importance is attached to sanitary and educational work, as well as measures to prevent the infection of pigs, to identify and treat infectious patients, especially those employed in animal husbandry, to improve toilets, and to protect the environment from human feces.

All people in the city whose pig breeding is developed are at risk. This includes all countries of the former Soviet Union. Up to 30% of all animals can be infected on the territory of one state.

The causative agent of the disease

The body of an adult is divided into three parts. These are strobilus, scolex and neck. Scolex is the head of a worm. It is located at its anterior end. This part is a fixing device with four suction cups, spout and hooks needed to suck.

The neck is an area of a certain length between the strobilus and the scolex. The length of this section can reach 2-3 meters in length if it is an adult worm. There are up to 1000 segments here, which are called proglottids.

The form of teniasis is always determined by where exactly the tapeworm is located. On the this moment There are four most common locations:

brain;
heart;
eyes;
lungs.

If no action is taken, the disease will progress, which, in turn, will be accompanied by speech disorders, hallucinations, motor impairment and epileptic seizures.

Methods of infection

Infection with pathology is possible when eating pork, as well as wild boar meat after insufficient heat treatment. In this case, the meat must be infected. If it passes sanitary control, but during the cooking process, a person who does not use gloves, did not wash his hands, and before that held an infected carcass in his hands, he can transfer the larvae to another piece of meat.

Invasion symptoms

If segments come out with feces, you need to tell the doctor about this, they can come out in a chain of 6-7 pieces or one by one. The main thing is that they can be seen with the naked eye. If it is a tapeworm, they will remain motionless. If we talk about bull tapeworm, the segments will actively move, which will also make it possible to accurately determine the pathogen. Another method of accurate diagnosis is an immunological method based on test systems using the influence of the tapeworm antigen on the patient's blood and feces.

If it is necessary to identify the larva located in the brain, it is necessary to conduct computed tomography. In the eyeballs, the worm is looked for using ophthalmoscopy, but this technique will only make the first assumption. Highly detailed information allow for a biopsy. But here there are some difficulties with which parts of the organs can be used to take the analysis.

Which doctor should I contact?

When certain laboratory examinations are carried out, the specialist will identify the helminth and conduct etiotropic and supportive therapy.

How to treat taeniasis?

The most effective result can be obtained if the patient is treated comprehensively, using traditional and traditional medicine. But it is not worth making a decision about specific methods of treatment on your own. Each of the drugs is prescribed only by a doctor. If a person at the same time wants to use any herbs for making tinctures, this issue should also be resolved with a specialist.

Medications

For the treatment of teniasis, doctors most often use four drugs, namely:

Praziquantel.
Biltricid.
Albendazole.
Vermox.

Each of the drugs is active against adult helminths, as well as their larvae and eggs. Which medicine will be used, the doctor determines on an individual basis. Self-medication is prohibited, since when choosing a drug without taking into account the characteristics of the patient's body, he may suffer from side effects.

Biltricide

The manufacturer of this drug is Germany. In pharmacies in Russia or in online stores, it can be purchased for about 450-500 rubles. Release the drug in the form of tablets. 1 piece contains up to 600 milligrams of the active ingredient. In addition to teniasis, the remedy is used to treat diseases such as:

paragonimiasis;
neurocysticercosis;
neurocysticercosis;
fasciolosis;
intestinal schistosomiasis.

Biltricid should not be used by pregnant women. Also among the contraindications include cysticercosis of the eye. If you do not take into account the rules of admission, a person may suffer from side effects. The most common of these are arrhythmia, headaches, drowsiness and fever.

Vermox

Vermox also comes in tablet form, but can be purchased much cheaper than Biltricide. One package will cost a person about 100 rubles. At the same time, Vermox refers to anthelmintic drugs with a wide spectrum of action. Before taking a person, you need to read the instructions for use, since the medicine has a number of contraindications, namely:

Crohn's disease.
Susceptibility to the active ingredient.
Nonspecific ulcerative colitis.
The period of bearing a child and breastfeeding.
Liver failure.

Vermox should not be used to treat children who are under 2 years of age. Since there have not been full studies in relation to such patients, complications can be very different. If the patient does not take into account the rules of admission, as a result of an overdose, he may experience headaches, nausea, diarrhea or urticaria.

Praziquantel

Praziquantel is used to treat pathologies that are provoked by flatworms. Before using this remedy, the patient is asked to undergo an examination to determine whether his body is susceptible to the active substance of the drug.

Like all other drugs in this group, Praziquantel should not be used if a woman is breastfeeding a child or is pregnant. At the time of treatment, doctors advise patients to refuse to work if nearby people may suffer from the patient's inattention.

Albendazole

Albendazole is also an inexpensive drug, but it is quite effective. It is not as popular as Praziquantel due to the fact that it can provoke enough a large number of side effects. Among the most frequently encountered are the following:

impaired renal function;
leukopenia;
stomach ache;
hives;
dizziness;
skin itching;
hypertension;
dyspepsia;
dizziness;
pancytopenia;
agranulocytosis.

The drug is strictly prohibited for use by women who are breastfeeding or pregnant. With extreme caution, drugs are taken if there is a suspicion of cirrhosis of the liver, and there are also pathologies affecting the retina.

Folk remedies

One of the effective folk remedies consider pumpkin seeds. To do this, they do not have to undergo heat treatment. If they are pan fried, healing properties may not be counted.

To prepare a folk remedy, it is worth peeling the seeds from the white peel, mash them in a mortar and pour a little water and a spoonful of honey. The remedy has no contraindications, so it can be used to treat young children. The mixture is consumed on an empty stomach in small doses for 60 minutes.

Diet for teniosis

If a person suffers from taeniasis, during this period he is recommended to consume the following products:

fish and lean meat;
vegetable soups;
lactic acid products;
beets and carrots;
berries and ripe fruits;
honey and jam;
potato.

Complications

recovery prognosis

If the patient went to the hospital on time and the doctors identified the causative agent of the pathology, the prognosis is always positive.

Prevention measures

For prevention, it is enough for a person not to buy pork in dubious places and where sellers do not adhere to sanitary standards. Purchased meat must undergo sufficient processing. Also, do not forget about personal hygiene products, which will protect yourself if the family already has an infected person.

Which drug is better to choose?

Anthelmintics

Helminthiasis is a problem that rarely occurs in adults, and often in children. The reason for this is non-compliance with hygiene standards or eating insufficiently thermally processed meat.

Adults rarely experience severe symptoms until they have too many of these organisms in their system.

Children experience the following symptoms:

sleep disturbance;
allergy;
stomach ache;
frequent inflammation of the nasopharynx;
increased irritability with bouts of outbursts of anger;
poor concentration on something;
dizziness;
stool disorders.

With symptoms on the basis of which there is a suspicion of helminthiasis, you should consult a doctor and undergo a series of prescribed laboratory tests. Their results and the overall clinical picture will help the doctor prescribe suitable anthelmintic drugs and a number of additional studies.

Decaris

Decaris contains levamisole, acts on microorganisms by paralyzing, and then they are excreted from the body in a natural way.

The tool is contraindicated:

children under three years old;
children older than three years should not use tablets with a concentration of more than 50 mg;
women during lactation.

Depending on age, patients are prescribed different dosages.

150 mg - adults;
50 mg - for children from three to six years;
50-75 mg - from 6 to 10 years;
100 mg - from 10 to 14 years.

Overdose symptoms include:

confusion;
dizziness;
nausea;
other signs of poisoning are possible.

In case of an overdose, the stomach is washed, controlled general state organism.

Pregnant women can be treated with Decaris only if its use is justified, and under the supervision of a physician.

Pirantel

A single dose is enough for a small infection, but in serious cases, a course of therapy lasting several days will be required. In addition, doctors recommend repeating the course in 2-3 weeks for prevention.

It is not recommended to drive a car during treatment with this drug! The drug causes drowsiness.

But the drug has few side effects. Active substances are poorly absorbed into the blood, due to which women can be treated with Pirantel during pregnancy and lactation.

It is taken with or after meals, chewed thoroughly and washed down with plenty of water. During therapy, feeding breast milk should be interrupted.

The dosage is selected individually depending on the presence of diseases or weight.

Shampoo Demodex: description, action and method of application

Vermox: instructions for use, action and contraindications

In case of an overdose, gastric lavage is done and the patient's further well-being is monitored.

Pirantel is applicable in acute leukemia and brain lesions. However, treatment without medical prescription is prohibited!

Which is more effective: Decaris or Pirantel?

When the question arises of choosing what to buy: Pirantel or Decaris, patients should consider that these two drugs are very similar to each other. They have the same effect on microorganisms, but differ significantly in other parameters.

Both drugs are equally effective in the fight against hookworms, pinworms or roundworms.

In this case, the determining selection criteria will be:

age;
chronic ailments;
diseases of internal organs;
features of the condition of a pregnant woman;
state of immunity.

Decaris has an immunomodulatory effect. However, Pirantel gives fewer undesirable effects. It is prescribed for pregnant women and children, and can be used as the final stage of therapy after Decaris.

Therefore, if you want to buy Dekaris or Pirantel, which is better, you should understand on the basis of medical prescriptions.

Comparison of Decaris with Vermox

Vermox is also an anthelmintic drug, poorly absorbed in the intestine, and 90% of the dose is excreted from the body along with feces. A small part of the drug is metabolized. It is contraindicated in children under 2 years of age and is not recommended for pregnant women in the 1st trimester.

During therapy, breastfeeding is interrupted. Use in case of overdose Activated carbon or potassium permanganate solution.

It is impossible to compare and choose drugs for yourself without medical supervision: both Vermox and Decaris are anthelmintic, but they have a different principle of action and composition.

Thus, choosing which is better: Vermox or Decaris, be sure to take into account that both drugs produce a large amount of toxins, reduce immunity, and can cause symptoms similar to SARS.

During treatment, the use of drinks containing ethanol is prohibited! This substance in combination with levamisole and mebendazole leads to severe intoxication, and sometimes death.

Children most often get pinworms, they are prescribed Vermox. With ascariasis, it is used after treatment with Decaris, but these 2 drugs cannot be treated at the same time - the body will undergo high intoxication.

Choice between Wormil and Pirantel

Thinking about which is better: Vormil or Pirantel, you should study their differences. Wormil fights helminths that have migrated to other organs and has a wider range of actions.

Pirantel is poorly absorbed into the blood, and has fewer contraindications. It is also more easily tolerated by pregnant women.

If good prevention is required, medications can be used, but this requires specialist advice. It is not recommended to purchase Pirantel or Vormil on your own, but the doctor will help you make the right choice.

Conclusion

Malaise, drowsiness and other symptoms can be caused by neurological or gastroenterological diseases, which is why the overall clinical picture does not allow prescribing the correct treatment based on symptoms alone.

In any case, a comprehensive diagnosis is prescribed, which includes laboratory tests. And even if in the past some certain medicine helped, you should not constantly use it, and even more so give it to children without a doctor's prescription.

Features of the biology and development cycle of pork tapeworm

Folk wisdom says that pork tapeworm is not sweeter than bovine. Pork tapeworm is a helminth that lives in the muscles of pigs and multiplies in the human intestine.

Systematic position

Helminth classification:

belongs to the animal kingdom;
subsection Protostomes;
type Flat (cestodes);
class Tape;
detachment Cyclophyllida;
the family of Tenida;
mind chain of pork.

Structural features

The body of the helminth is divided into three sections: head, neck, body. Description of organs:

The rounded head (scolex) has small dimensions (0.6–2 mm), four suckers, a corolla with hooks, the number of which can reach up to 30–32. Thanks to its hooks, the helminth received the name armed.
The neck, about 10 mm long, is the growth zone of the worm, from which new segments that do not move independently are constantly growing.
The body (strobilus) consists of segments or proglottids. Each mature segment contains a uterus with lateral branches, the number of which on each side can reach up to 8–12. Each segment contains up to 50 thousand eggs. The body length of the worm reaches 4 meters. The body has dense integument, which reliably protects the body of the worm from digestion by the digestive enzymes of the human intestine.

with the help of four suckers and a corolla with two rows of hooks, the animal is attached to the walls of the intestine;
hermaphroditic individuals, sexual reproduction, high fecundity;
life cycle with a change of two owners.

More about the building.

Range and habitat

Pig tapeworm is found in areas of animal husbandry - pig breeding, causing taeniasis - a disease that most often affects:

women, which is associated with professional responsibilities for the care of animals;
adults who love pork more than children, especially chops and kebabs.

Features of the life cycle of tapeworm

Scheme of the development of the pig tapeworm: stages of the oncosphere (eggs), larvae, adult helminth. The main intermediate host of the porcine tapeworm, in which the development of the larvae, is the pig. The carrier of worm eggs can be wild boars, dogs.

egg stage

Separated from the body of the animal, segments with mature eggs are passively removed from the human intestine. Pork tapeworm eggs are rounded, with a thin, colorless, transparent shell. For some time they remain viable in the ground. Infection of pigs occurs when eating sewage. Infection of a person can occur when oncospheres with unwashed vegetables and fruits contaminated with sewage get in.

Larva and intermediate host

Once in the body of the intermediate host, a larva with hooks emerges from the egg. The larva of the tapeworm pierces the intestinal walls, penetrates the circulatory and lymphatic systems, and enters the internal organs and muscles.

Worm larvae can live in the body of not only pigs, but also humans. Man is not only the final, but sometimes the intermediate host of the tapeworm. Human infection can occur when eggs are introduced into oral cavity from the small intestine during vomiting.

After 2–4 months, eggs develop into larvae (Finns or cysticerci), which settle in muscle tissue, eyeballs, brain, and subcutaneous tissue. The larval stages have the appearance of bubbles filled with a clear liquid, the size of a millet or rice grain. The larvae live for several years, then they die - the life cycle of the pork tapeworm is completed. Man is a dead end branch for their development.

Larva and definitive host

Once with insufficiently cooked, fried, salted meat in digestive system final host:

the head of the Finn turns out, attaching itself to the walls of the small intestine with hooks and suckers;
segments begin to form from the neck of the worm.

The development of the tapeworm passes quickly - after 3-4 months, the sexually mature worm begins to lay a huge number of eggs. The tapeworm releases metabolic products into the host's intestines, which cause headache, weakness, sleep disturbance, nausea, and vomiting.

The pig tapeworm is one of the most dangerous helminths, as it can infect a person at the larval stage and at the egg stage. It can live not only in the small intestine, but also in many internal organs. The development cycle of the pork tapeworm occurs with the change of two owners.