The patient suffered from abdominal pain and transit disorders, caused by an infestation of intestinal worms, called roundworms. Dr Nicolas Benech, infectious disease specialist, tells us more about this parasitosis.
Written on 12/11/2024
The Health Mag – France 5
On social networks, certain videos of intestinal worm infestations have several million views. In these surgical images, impressive colonies of worms are removed from the digestive systems of infested patients. In most cases, these viral videos depict infestations caused by the roundworm worm. Also called ascariasis, this parasitic infection, not very common in France, is “the most common parasitosis in the intertropical zone“, according to the Health Insurance platform, Ameli.fr.
“You get a roundworm from food contamination“, explains Dr Nicolas Benech, gastroenterologist and infectious disease specialist at the Hospices Civils de Lyon. “Either with contaminated water or with foods that have been contaminated by this water, such as vegetables.“The spread of this intestinal worm is favored by”heat, humidity and lack of hygiene“, indicates Health Insurance.
More precisely, contamination “is done by ingestion of eggs containing roundworm embryos“, note the health authorities.”These eggs can be present in contaminated water or on poorly cleaned foods (fruits and vegetables), on which soil remains.“The risk is then to develop a massive infestation of parasitic worms. Indeed,”we rarely have just one roundworm“, specifies Dr Nicolas Benech. We mainly observe ascariasis”when there is a massive infestation” from roundworms, adds the specialist.
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What are the symptoms of ascariasis?
“The roundworm has two stages in its parasitic cycle“, deciphers Dr. Benech. The worms, after hatching in the digestive system, “pass into tissues” et “mature in the lungs“, then return to the digestive tract and begin their adult phase. In the lungs, they can cause “respiratory symptoms, coughing, some kind of asthma attack“In the digestive tract, the infestation is rather asymptomatic. It can, however, cause “non-specific digestive disorders“, adds Nicholas Benech.
Children are the first population affected by roundworm infestations. “When the larvae migrate from the liver to the lungs and trachea, an attack of hives can occur as well as an allergic reaction responsible for attacks of dry cough with possibly some clear sputum and accompanied by a moderate fever“, adds Ameli.fr. Once adults, the worms can cause nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and difficulty digesting in children.
