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Schistosomiasis; Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

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Schistosomiasis; Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Schistosomiasis, also known as snail fever and bilharzia, is a disease caused by parasitic flatworms called schistosomes.

The urinary tract or the intestines may be infected. Symptoms include abdominal pain, diarrhea, bloody stool, or blood in the urine. Symptoms include abdominal pain, diarrhea, bloody stool, or blood in the urine.[5] Those who have been infected for a long time may experience liver damage, kidney failure, infertility, or bladder cancer. In children, it may cause poor growth and learning difficulty. The disease is spread by contact with fresh water contaminated with the parasites.These parasites are released from infected freshwater snails. The disease is especially common among children in developing countries, as they are more likely to play in contaminated water. Other high-risk groups include farmers, fishermen, and people using unclean water during daily living. It belongs to the group of helminth infections. Diagnosis is by finding eggs of the parasite in a person's urine or stool. It can also be confirmed by finding antibodies against the disease in the blood. Methods of preventing the disease include improving access to clean water and reducing the number of snails. In areas where the disease is common, the medication praziquantel may be given once a year to the entire group.This is done to decrease the number of people infected, and consequently, the spread of the disease.Praziquantel is also the treatment recommended by the World Health Organization for those who are known to be infected. Schistosomiasis affected about 236.6 million people worldwide in 2019. An estimated 4,400 to 200,000 people die from it each year. The disease is most commonly found in Africa, Asia, and South America. Around 700 million people, in more than 70 countries, live in areas where the disease is common. In tropical countries, schistosomiasis is second only to malaria among parasitic diseases with the greatest economic impact. Schistosomiasis is listed as a neglected tropical disease.

22/08/2023

Patients should receive drugs and corticosteroids, especially if acutely ill. Steroids reduce inflammation and help suppress changes that result from killing of the parasites. As maturing schistosomes are less susceptible to therapy than adult worms, a second course of treatment is necessary. This is given several weeks after the first course of therapy.

The drug of choice for treating all species of schistosomes is praziquantel. Cure rates of 65-90% have been described after a single treatment with praziquantel. In individuals not cured, the drug causes egg excretion to be reduced by 90%. Praziquantel affects the membrane permeability of the parasite, which causes vacuolation of the tegument. It paralyses the worm and exposes it to attack by the host immune system. However, as praziquantel is ineffective on developing schistosomula, it may not abort early infection. Praziquantel can be used in pregnant and lactating individuals. Resistance to praziquantel occurs in the field and is well defined. Adverse effects include dizziness, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal discomfort, bloody stool, urticaria, and fever following initiation of treatment. These are usually mild and last about 24 hours. These are reactions from dying worms.

27/09/2022

The lifecycle of schistosomiasis/bilharzia
Once inside the human body, schistosome larvae develop into adult worms and the eggs they lay can become trapped in the body’s tissues. Adult worms grow to approximately 1cm in length and live in blood vessels. Without treatment with anti-worm medication, the worms can keep laying eggs for several years.
Eggs can pass out of the body into water, through excreta. When this happens, they release tiny larvae that need to grow inside freshwater snails for a few weeks before they're able to infect another person. This means it's not possible to catch the infection directly from someone else who has it, but indirectly through contact with contaminated water.

27/09/2022

Safe and effective medication is available for treatment of both urinary and intestinal schistosomiasis. Praziquantel, a prescription medication, is taken for 1-2 days to treat infections caused by all schistosome species.

25/09/2022

What medications/treatments are used?
Schistosomiasis is treated with the prescription medication praziquantel (Biltricide®). The drug, provided in pill form, belongs to a class of medications called anthelmintics. These types of drugs kill worms.
You should take praziquantel with water and food. It's usually taken for one day, either as a single larger dose, or three smaller doses in one day.
Before taking any medication, you should tell your healthcare provider what other medications and supplements you take and what kinds of allergies you have. You should also ask whether or not you’ll be able to eat grapefruit or drink grapefruit juice while taking this medication.
Complications/side effects of the treatment
You may have side effects from the infection itself or from the medication and the worms dying off, or both. These might include:
Headache.
Fever.
Stomach pain or nausea.
Dizziness.
Itching.
Malaise (just not feeling well).
If you have hives, contact your healthcare provider. Also, call your provider about any other symptoms that worry you or that seem to be getting worse.

25/09/2022

What causes the condition?
Schistosomiasis is caused by a parasite that resides in certain snails in freshwater locations. The form of the parasite that leaves the snail penetrates human skin with its forked head. Infected people release urine and f***s that are infected with eggs into water where the snails are. The eggs move into the snails and the cycle goes on. Infected children and adults get infected over and over again.
However, people don’t infect each other. You can’t give schistosomiasis to another person if you have it.
Researchers are working to find a way to control the disease, with some efforts directed toward vaccine development and others toward finding a way to deal with the snails.

25/09/2022

What are the symptoms of schistosomiasis?
Many people have no symptoms of schistosomiasis. Early signs and symptoms (those that happen within days of being infected) may include itchiness and a skin rash.
Later symptoms (those that develop within 30 to 60 days of being infected) may include:
Fever.
Chills.
Cough.
Muscle aches and pain.
If you aren’t treated, symptoms that develop after years of being infected may include:
Pain in your stomach.
Enlarged liver (hepatomegaly).
Blood in your urine (p*e), also called hematuria.
Difficulty or pain while urinating (dysuria).
Blood in f***s (p**p), also called hematochezia.
Miscarriage.
Chronic (long-lasting) schistosomiasis may make it more likely that you’ll develop scars on your liver or bladder cancer.
In rare cases, you might have eggs in your brain or spinal cord. If this is true, you may have seizures, become paralyzed or have an inflamed spinal cord.

04/09/2022

Paragonimus is a lung fluke (flatworm) that infects the lungs of humans after eating an infected raw or undercooked crab or crayfish. Less frequent, but more serious cases of paragonimiasis occur when the parasite travels to the central nervous system.
Although rare, paragonimiasis has been acquired in the United States, with multiple cases reported from the Midwest. Once the diagnosis is made, effective treatment for paragonimiasis is available from a physician.
Left: Eggs of Paragonimus sp. taken from a lung biopsy stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E). These eggs measured 80-90 µm by 40-45 µm. The species was not identified in this case. Right: P. westermani adult, this approximately 1cm long fluke is viewed under magnification. Credit:

04/09/2022

Fascioliasis is a parasitic infection typically caused by Fasciola hepatica, which is also known as “the common liver fluke” or “the sheep liver fluke.” A related parasite, Fasciola gigantica, also can infect people. Fascioliasis is found in all continents except Antarctica, in over 70 countries, especially where there are sheep or cattle. People usually become infected by eating raw watercress or other water plants contaminated with immature parasite larvae. The young worms move through the intestinal wall, the abdominal cavity, and the liver tissue, into the bile ducts, where they develop into mature adult flukes that produce eggs. The pathology typically is most pronounced in the bile ducts and liver. Fasciola infection is both treatable and preventable.

04/09/2022

Opisthorchis species are liver fluke parasites that humans can get by eating raw or undercooked fish, crabs, or crayfish from areas in Asia and Europe where the parasite is found, including Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Germany, Italy, Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine. Liver flukes infect the liver, gallbladder, and bile duct in humans. While most infected persons do not show any symptoms, infections that last a long time can result in severe symptoms and serious illness. Untreated, infections may persist for up to 25–30 years, the lifespan of the parasite. Typical symptoms include indigestion, abdominal pain, diarrhea, or constipation. In severe cases, abdominal pain, nausea, and diarrhea can occur.

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