Subcutaneous parasites, which live in the thickness of human skin, damage it and cause inflammation. They can penetrate from the main place of "deployment" to other organs and cause serious diseases. Most subcutaneous helminths are found in southern countries, and the common person can become infected with them during a vacation or business trip.
The danger of subcutaneous helminthic invasion is that it is asymptomatic during the incubation period, which can last for years. This subsequently interferes with the treatment and reduces its effectiveness.
What are subcutaneous parasites
Helminths affect not only the internal organs of a person, but also his skin. Entering its thickness, they damage the epidermis, feed on its cells and defecate. Waste products of subcutaneous worms cause intoxication because they contain toxic substances. And the longer the worms are under a person's skin, the more pronounced the symptoms of the invasion.
Subcutaneous worms cause many diseases because they affect the immune and lymphatic systems of the human body. For example, parasites can cause the development of elephantiasis - elephantiasis. It interferes with the circulation of lymph in the body. This leads to an increase in the volume of the limbs and their distortion. In the last stage, the affected organ becomes covered with ulcers, necrosis develops.
Human helminths that live under the skin include:
- Nematodes of the genus Dirofilaria. Cause of heartworm disease. Infection of the body is caused by the bite of insects that suck blood: lice, fleas, ticks, which transmit larvae from one host to another. Adult heartworms can reach 30 cm in length. The process of reproduction takes place in the thickness of the skin, then the female lays microfilariae in the bloodstream.
- Filariae. Cause of filariasis. They are parasitic roundworms. An adult can reach almost half a meter, while the diameter of the body is not more than 0, 3 mm. Carriers of filariasis are insects that suck blood and transmit parasite larvae from one host to another.
- Bullworm larvae. The person causes the development of cysticercosis. Infection occurs through the intestines, where the eggs of the parasite penetrate along with water, food, dirt. After that, under the influence of gastric juices, their shell dissolves - the larvae come out. They then spread throughout the body along with the bloodstream.
- Blood flukes of the genus Schistosoma. It's called schistosomiasis. An adult can reach 2 cm in length. Reproduction occurs by the penetration of larvae into the body - cercariae together with water.
Main manifestations and treatment
If a person has parasites under the skin, it primarily affects his condition: there is flabbyness, discoloration, scarring and microcracks. This is due to the fact that "guests" damage the skin, feed on its cells and poison waste products.
Subcutaneous parasites in humans cause symptoms of helminthic invasion:
- Allergic rash;
- Cough;
- Decreased immunity;
- Itching;
- Peeling, redness of the skin;
- Appetite problems;
- Joint and muscle pain;
- Sleep disorder;
- irritability;
- Apathy.
Skin parasites in a sick person cause disorders in the work of the whole organism: anemia, dysbacteriosis, etc. develop.
Treatment of parasitic disease is selected individually. The choice of method is influenced by the degree of damage to the organism, symptoms and type of pathogen. In some cases, in addition to drug treatment, surgery may be needed to remove the helminth under the skin or even the entire affected organ.
In addition to anthelmintic drugs, antihistamines and vasoconstrictors are used. If the inflammation started due to worms living under the skin, then antibiotic therapy is needed.
You should not try to get rid of helminths that live under the skin with the help of traditional medicine - as practice shows, they are ineffective and can harm human health.
Symptoms of filariasis
The subcutaneous worms that cause this disease - filariasis - appear in the human body after being bitten by an infected blood-sucking insect. The highest number of cases was recorded in tropical and subtropical countries.
These subcutaneous worms in humans can live in the human body and do not manifest for a long time: the incubation period of the disease can last up to 7 years. This complicates the diagnosis.
Symptoms and manifestations of the invasion appear gradually, as the parasite grows under a person’s skin and its effect on surrounding tissues. The most common manifestations of filariasis include:
- Nettle;
- Itching;
- warts;
- eczema;
- Small hard bumps under the skin.
As the disease worsens, fever, general weakness, headache, and drowsiness may occur.
Treatment of filariasis should take place in a hospital setting. Antiparasitic drugs are used to deworm drugs. The effectiveness of the therapy is monitored by blood analysis. In cases when that does not help, the sick person undergoes surgery in order to restore the outflow of lymph from the affected organ.
Cysticercosis and schistosomiasis
Tapeworm larvae cause cysticercosis. This type of helminth is characterized by survival: it is enough for one parasite to enter the human body and it will quickly develop into an adult, which will then begin to multiply.
This feature makes it difficult to treat the disease - if a segment of the head remains after surgical removal of the worm, the parasite will grow again. Despite the fact that the adult tapeworm is found in the human gut, its larvae spread through the bloodstream throughout the body, including under the skin. After that, they can stay there for a long time - from 5 to 30 years.
If in cysticercosis the worms are wrapped under the skin or in the muscle tissue, then the disease is asymptomatic for the person. However, the location of the parasite can be determined by tumor neoplasms that will rise above the skin. Palpation of the tubercle can determine that it is hollow on the inside. The skin of the shoulders, upper halves of the chest and palms usually become a favorite place for tapeworm larvae.
In subcutaneous cysticercosis, the drug is not administered, the patient should be under the supervision of a physician. This is due to the fact that when the parasite dies after the use of antiparasitic agents, toxins begin to enter the body. They in turn can cause a severe allergic reaction.
Schistosomal larvae, cercariae, cause schistosomiasis in humans. Infection occurs through water. The first symptoms of worms under the skin appear 10-15 minutes after the invasion. This is due to the fact that worms under the skin secrete a large amount of their own secretory fluid, which causes toxic-allergic reactions in a person.
First events:
- Intense itching;
- Nettle;
- Rash.
Then there is a lull, after which (after 1-2 months) begins the acute phase of schistosomiasis, which indicates the neglect of the disease:
- Fever;
- Nocturnal hyperhidrosis;
- Nettle;
- Dry cough;
- Changes in the qualitative composition of blood.
Currently, the treatment of schistosomiasis is limited to the use of 2 anthelmintic drugs. Steroids, antihistamines and anti-inflammatory drugs are also used in the acute phase of the disease.
Heartworm and Morgellon virus
These two diseases have similar symptoms, with some differences. In heartworm disease, a sick person finds a small tubercle under the skin on his body, which moves during palpation. This is what indicates that the subcutaneous worm has wound up in the body. The same manifestation of invasion was observed in Morgellon virus.
The essential difference between these two parasites is that heartworms do not bother their host: the blister under the skin does not cause discomfort, it can appear and disappear from time to time. Worms parasitize in the arm, leg, near the eyes, nose, chest, in men - in the genitals. If heartworm is under a person's skin for a long time, then under the influence of toxins, his body temperature rises and he feels weak.
With the Morgellon virus, severe itching is felt on the skin of the helminthic invasion. In the absence of medical care, a bleeding wound, eczema, soon appears. This increases the risk of infecting the body with other diseases several times.
The best treatment for parasites is surgical removal.