Over 60,000 people die every year from Ascaris lumbricoides, which infects approximately one billion people worldwide.
There is frequent documentation of it in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, China, and East Asia, mainly tropical and subtropical countries.
Like many other topical disease Ascariasis is neglected, causing approximately 1.2 to 1.5 disability-adjusted years of disability.
Epidemiology
Ascariasis is a common parasitic infection among humans. It infects individuals all over the world and has done so for centuries. Ancient Egyptian papyrus describe the parasite, which has been identified in mummies dating back to around 800 BC. Hippocrates and Aristotle also described it.
Children and adults have been found to have this disease in regions with poor sanitation and poor personal hygiene, and in areas where fertilizers are made from human feces. As migration and travel increase in nonendemic areas, infection risks are higher.
Anatomy
Pathophysiology
Upon consuming eggs contaminated with feces, the host becomes infected. with ascariasis. Upon entering the duodenum, larvae enter the circulation through the enteric mucosa.
Within the first week after entering the capillaries (venous, arterial, or lymphatic), the virus reaches the liver via the portal vein, and then the lungs. The larvae are eventually expectorated and ingested, reentering the digestive tract.
After approximately 3 weeks in the lumen of the small intestine, the larvae mature into adult worms. When adult male and female worms are present, they mate, and the female can generate up to 200,000 eggs every day.
They are later expelled by the soil’s excrement. In a wet, shaded, and warm environment, these eggs develop into infectious form in two to eight weeks and stay viable for up to seventeen months. On consumption, the cycle of infection restarts.
Etiology
Ascariasis is caused by the soil-transmitted large nematode Ascaris lumbricoides. Female adults can reach a length between 20cm-30cm, and males can reach a length between 15cm-20cm.
The nematodes are roundworms which can be yellow, white, or pink. There is a straight rear end on the female worm, and it is thicker than the males. Male worms are slender, with a ventrally inverted back end and retractile copulating spicules.
Adult parasites live for about one year, after which they die and are spontaneously eliminated from the body. It is for this reason that diseases can be cured spontaneously if reinfections do not occur. A human host does not support the growth of adult worms.
Genetics
Prognostic Factors
Research done in Africa and Asia indicates that a single dose of albendazole leads to a cure rate of over 95% and a steady decline in egg production over the following weeks in 99% of instances.
Nevertheless, patient transfer is necessary to avoid a recurrence. In addition, there is an urgent need to enhance basic sanitation and supply clean water in these regions.
To aid in reducing the burden of ascariasis, numerous localities are currently being targeted for socioeconomic improvement. Ascariasis can be prevented by avoiding interaction with manure, wearing good footwear, and obtaining an education.
Over 60,000 people die every year from Ascaris lumbricoides, which infects approximately one billion people worldwide.
There is frequent documentation of it in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, China, and East Asia, mainly tropical and subtropical countries.
Like many other topical disease Ascariasis is neglected, causing approximately 1.2 to 1.5 disability-adjusted years of disability.
Ascariasis is a common parasitic infection among humans. It infects individuals all over the world and has done so for centuries. Ancient Egyptian papyrus describe the parasite, which has been identified in mummies dating back to around 800 BC. Hippocrates and Aristotle also described it.
Children and adults have been found to have this disease in regions with poor sanitation and poor personal hygiene, and in areas where fertilizers are made from human feces. As migration and travel increase in nonendemic areas, infection risks are higher.
Upon consuming eggs contaminated with feces, the host becomes infected. with ascariasis. Upon entering the duodenum, larvae enter the circulation through the enteric mucosa.
Within the first week after entering the capillaries (venous, arterial, or lymphatic), the virus reaches the liver via the portal vein, and then the lungs. The larvae are eventually expectorated and ingested, reentering the digestive tract.
After approximately 3 weeks in the lumen of the small intestine, the larvae mature into adult worms. When adult male and female worms are present, they mate, and the female can generate up to 200,000 eggs every day.
They are later expelled by the soil’s excrement. In a wet, shaded, and warm environment, these eggs develop into infectious form in two to eight weeks and stay viable for up to seventeen months. On consumption, the cycle of infection restarts.
Ascariasis is caused by the soil-transmitted large nematode Ascaris lumbricoides. Female adults can reach a length between 20cm-30cm, and males can reach a length between 15cm-20cm.
The nematodes are roundworms which can be yellow, white, or pink. There is a straight rear end on the female worm, and it is thicker than the males. Male worms are slender, with a ventrally inverted back end and retractile copulating spicules.
Adult parasites live for about one year, after which they die and are spontaneously eliminated from the body. It is for this reason that diseases can be cured spontaneously if reinfections do not occur. A human host does not support the growth of adult worms.
Research done in Africa and Asia indicates that a single dose of albendazole leads to a cure rate of over 95% and a steady decline in egg production over the following weeks in 99% of instances.
Nevertheless, patient transfer is necessary to avoid a recurrence. In addition, there is an urgent need to enhance basic sanitation and supply clean water in these regions.
To aid in reducing the burden of ascariasis, numerous localities are currently being targeted for socioeconomic improvement. Ascariasis can be prevented by avoiding interaction with manure, wearing good footwear, and obtaining an education.
Age more than two years: Administer a single oral dose of 11 mg (as base)/kg The maximum dose is 1 g/dose
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430796/
medtigo
Ascariasis
Updated :
August 30, 2023
Over 60,000 people die every year from Ascaris lumbricoides, which infects approximately one billion people worldwide.
There is frequent documentation of it in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, China, and East Asia, mainly tropical and subtropical countries.
Like many other topical disease Ascariasis is neglected, causing approximately 1.2 to 1.5 disability-adjusted years of disability.
Ascariasis is a common parasitic infection among humans. It infects individuals all over the world and has done so for centuries. Ancient Egyptian papyrus describe the parasite, which has been identified in mummies dating back to around 800 BC. Hippocrates and Aristotle also described it.
Children and adults have been found to have this disease in regions with poor sanitation and poor personal hygiene, and in areas where fertilizers are made from human feces. As migration and travel increase in nonendemic areas, infection risks are higher.
Upon consuming eggs contaminated with feces, the host becomes infected. with ascariasis. Upon entering the duodenum, larvae enter the circulation through the enteric mucosa.
Within the first week after entering the capillaries (venous, arterial, or lymphatic), the virus reaches the liver via the portal vein, and then the lungs. The larvae are eventually expectorated and ingested, reentering the digestive tract.
After approximately 3 weeks in the lumen of the small intestine, the larvae mature into adult worms. When adult male and female worms are present, they mate, and the female can generate up to 200,000 eggs every day.
They are later expelled by the soil’s excrement. In a wet, shaded, and warm environment, these eggs develop into infectious form in two to eight weeks and stay viable for up to seventeen months. On consumption, the cycle of infection restarts.
Ascariasis is caused by the soil-transmitted large nematode Ascaris lumbricoides. Female adults can reach a length between 20cm-30cm, and males can reach a length between 15cm-20cm.
The nematodes are roundworms which can be yellow, white, or pink. There is a straight rear end on the female worm, and it is thicker than the males. Male worms are slender, with a ventrally inverted back end and retractile copulating spicules.
Adult parasites live for about one year, after which they die and are spontaneously eliminated from the body. It is for this reason that diseases can be cured spontaneously if reinfections do not occur. A human host does not support the growth of adult worms.
Research done in Africa and Asia indicates that a single dose of albendazole leads to a cure rate of over 95% and a steady decline in egg production over the following weeks in 99% of instances.
Nevertheless, patient transfer is necessary to avoid a recurrence. In addition, there is an urgent need to enhance basic sanitation and supply clean water in these regions.
To aid in reducing the burden of ascariasis, numerous localities are currently being targeted for socioeconomic improvement. Ascariasis can be prevented by avoiding interaction with manure, wearing good footwear, and obtaining an education.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430796/
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