Symptoms of the presence of parasites in the body often seem incoherent and unexplained, and although the thought is frightening, they are more common than many people believe. There are many organisms in the world - various types of worms, protozoa that can parasitize almost all of a person’s internal organs and cause symptoms of various diseases. What tests to do for parasites and when to do them, you can find out from this article.
When should I be tested?
Often, infection with parasitic diseases occurs when eating poorly washed vegetables and fruits, meat, fish, poorly processed raw water, as well as through household contact when using general equipment, toys in children.
There are the following types of parasites:
- Protozoa (lamblia, amoeba, plasmodium malaria).
- Parasitic arthropoda (demodex pests, scabies -causing agents).
- Parasitic worms (helminths).
The most common parasitic diseases are caused by worms (worms) and occur among young children, pet owners, and socially disadvantaged people.
The main feature of the parasite is its unclear presence at an early stage. For a long time after being infected, they do not manifest themselves in any way and cause symptoms that are already obvious at an advanced stage.
You can recognize the presence of parasites in the body by the following manifestations:
- Flatulence, gas, constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain, intestinal.
- Decreased or increased appetite, discomfort after eating.
- Unmotivated weight loss.
- Itching of the skin, incomprehensible rash, dermatitis, urticaria.
- Pale skin, increased fatigue, or diagnosed anemia (most often iron deficiency).
- Excessive work, sleep disorders (drowsiness, insomnia).
- Shaking teeth during sleep, prolonged cough.
If these symptoms appear, you should see a general practitioner and undergo a parasite test.
What is the test for spreading parasites
There are many studies to identify the presence of parasites (protozoa, arthropods, helminths) in the body.
Since the most common disease is helminthiases, the best way to undergo a parasite test is to do a stool test.
To conduct a standard study, patients need to collect three separate stool samples from different areas of the same section into a sterile container and send the biomaterial to the laboratory as soon as possible. The doctor’s lab assistant examines the samples obtained under a microscope and is able to identify both live parasites and from eggs.
Standard studies of feces for worm eggs do not always provide information. Because of the peculiarity of the life cycle of the parasite, in the test samples, instead of eggs or adults, there may be dead helminths or fragments thereof, which cannot be used to diagnose the disease.
More informative is the extended stool analysis, which uses a polymerase chain reaction. This technology makes it possible to detect helminth DNA even when it is dead, in a state of hibernation, or just fragments of the organism entering the material under study.
To tell exactly whether there are parasites in the body or not, the test must be done at least three times on different days. The accuracy of one study, according to statistical data, was 50%, while with a three -fold study, it increased to 99%.
Another analysis of no less importance is the serological reaction - the determination of antibody levels against the parasite. They can identify acute and chronic helminthic invasion (IgG) (IgM) or delayAlso, they can determine infection with parasites that cannot be found in feces.
Some helminths are parasitic on the bile ducts, and can also form cysts in the lungs, liver and brain. They can be predicted with appropriate clinical symptoms, and detected using serological tests, X-rays, CT or MRI, as well as by biopsy.
For the diagnosis of parasitic skin diseases (scabies, demodicosis, certain types of helminths), scraping and skin biopsies, special tests (iodine) and serological tests are used.
What tests should adults do for parasites?
Adults tend to suffer from helminthiasis, because the closer they follow the rules of personal hygiene, the less often they eat unwashed fruits and vegetables from the garden, and also the less contact with street animals during play.
Need to undergo helminthiases testing for adults if there are certain non-specific complaints (abdominal and intestinal pain, prolonged itching of the skin, rash, weakness, fatigue, anemia), for all patients before hospitalization, and also periodically as partfrom preventive studies for specific categories of employees.
This includes food industry workers, people who work with children (nannies and nannies in kindergartens, teachers, heads of sports divisions). These people should be tested for enterobiasis and ascariasis.
Hunters and farmers should be checked regularly for trichinosis and strongyloidiasis; it is important for fishermen to undergo serological examination to detect opisthorchiasis. More information on which tests should be taken in this case or cases can be obtained from the therapist.
What is the test to spread the parasite to a child
Every child should undergo a full diagnosis to identify the worm and prescribe effective therapy against it before attending kindergarten and primary school (during admission, after a long break or illness). Also, in preschool institutions and schools, there are mandatory periodic preventive inspections to detect helminthic attacks at an early stage and prevent their spread.
To diagnose helminthiasis, children should perform a general analysis of the stool, as well as scraping from the perianal folds.
Scraping is recognized as the most effective and accurate method for diagnosing enterobiasis (a disease caused by cream worms). During that time, before going to the toilet and perineum toilet, a special cotton swab, spatula, or small piece of transparent tape is taken from the perianal fold, which is then applied on a glass slide and examined under a microscope. If there is an illness, the lab assistant will find pinworm eggs in the test material.
Treatment for parasitic diseases is prescribed by a doctor or pediatrician, in difficult cases - by an infectious disease specialist. With skin lesions (some helminths, with scabies or demodicosis), therapy is chosen by a dermatologist.
It is important not to delay contacting a specialist if you suspect a parasitic disease, as delays in treatment can cause complications in the patient himself, as well as increase the risk of transmitting the disease to others.