Coughing and worms are phenomena that seem incompatible.However, the cause of a dry cough is often worms that settle and reproduce in the human body.
Not all worms are capable of this, but only those that can be localized in the respiratory system.
What worms cause coughing?These are parasites that initially live in the intestines, but as a result of rapid reproduction or in search of better living conditions, they end up in the liver, and from there, through the general bloodstream, they reach the bronchopulmonary tissue.
Types of worms
Roundworms, roundworms, live and reproduce in the intestines.Transmission occurs through eggs that enter the body with food or from the hands and objects used by infected people.Soil, fruits, vegetables, undercooked meat and fish - all this can introduce worm eggs into the human body.
To avoid infection, you need:
- avoid contact with infected animals;
- do not use items belonging to people with worm infections;
- keep hands clean, especially after returning from the road and before eating;
- wash foods eaten raw (fruits and vegetables) well;
- properly prepare fish and meat dishes.
Need to know!Roundworms trigger a dry cough.Migrating through the circulatory system, their larvae enter the respiratory organs - bronchi, trachea, lungs - irritating receptors and causing these symptoms.The larval migration period throughout the body is one to two weeks.
Giardia is a very small, single-celled microorganism that lives in stagnant water.The disease caused by them is called giardiasis.Parasitic infections occur mainly through the following ways.
- From an infected person or animal to a healthy person or animal.
- When eating poorly washed food.
- When drinking raw milk or water that has not been boiled.
After settling in a person's small intestine, Giardia is capable of infecting other people within 10 days.After some time, giardiasis becomes chronic.The cause of giardiasis cough is an allergic reaction that occurs when the body is poisoned by parasite waste products.For someone infected with Giardia, it often ends up with bronchial asthma.
One of the main dangers of giardiasis is the absence of obvious symptoms in the early stages that would allow accurate diagnosis of the disease.The discharge of worms from the body is episodic, so Giardia cysts cannot always be detected in the feces.You will have to take samples for analysis several times before you can diagnose the disease with confidence.
Apart from roundworms and lamblia, symptoms can also be triggered by toxocara which is also called dog roundworm because it is widespread in dogs.After reaching the bronchi, the larvae cause an allergic reaction.
Types of worms that attack children
If a child has a cough, and does not include a cold, there is good reason to assume that he may be infected with worms.Because this can be a reaction to different types of worms, only laboratory tests can determine which worm is causing it.
Attention!Most often, cough with worms occurs in young children.
It is not surprising that parents often mistake them for symptoms of a cold, and begin to treat them with generally accepted drugs, which, due to the specificity of their action, actually eliminate the problem.But at the same time, the cause that causes it, namely worm infestation, remains unresolved.Worms continue to multiply in the child's body, and the disease progresses.
Giardiasis and ascariasis
What parasites cause symptoms in children?Only they are able to migrate throughout the body and reach the respiratory tract.These parasites include roundworms and lamblia.Sexually mature individuals live in the intestines, but the parasite larvae have the ability to penetrate together with the blood into the respiratory system, irritating receptors and causing allergic reactions.
In this case, some of the larvae are expelled, others are swallowed and re-entered the intestines, where the next life cycle of the parasite begins.Some larvae remain in the respiratory system, disrupting its function.
Toxocara and pulmonary fluke
The most dangerous for the respiratory system are flatworms, especially flatworms and toxokara.Having settled in the lungs, they cause paragonimiasis and toxocariasis - serious diseases accompanied by damage to lung tissue and progressive inflammatory processes.
Penetration of flatworms into the child's lungs causes him to cough.If untreated, the inflammatory process progresses and enters a stage accompanied by the formation of mucus.The coughed up phlegm may contain blood.These alarming manifestations should force parents to immediately consult an infectious disease doctor.
Important!When infected by chance, phlegm accompanied by pus and blood cannot be avoided.
Types of worms that infect adults
Not all patients believe that worms and cough can be part of the same process, but they are.Coughs caused by worms are usually dry and easily mistaken for a cold.In this case, the absence of other ARVI symptoms that usually accompany colds is cause for concern.
What explains this condition?There are two reasons for this:
- Mechanical effects of helminth larvae on lung tissue.
- Allergic response by the infected body to the presence of waste products of worms and decomposition of dead individuals.
There are not many worms and other parasites that attack the respiratory tract.This is:
- roundworm;
- Giardia;
- as it happens;
- Echinococcus tapeworm.
ascariasis
Roundworms are very widespread, so coughs caused by ascariasis are a common phenomenon.Roundworm transmission occurs through the traditional route of helminthiasis.These include contact with soil, eating unwashed fruit and vegetables, and dirty hands.
Ascaris larvae cause problems by mechanically affecting the tissues of the respiratory system.This occurs during the migration phase of the parasite.The mechanism and sequence of impact of roundworms on the human respiratory system is as follows.
Once in the digestive tract, roundworm eggs, under the influence of enzymes and their own digestive juices, shed their shell, turning into larvae.The latter is endowed with the ability to penetrate the intestinal wall into the bloodstream.After that they are carried by the blood throughout the body - reaching the liver, heart, lungs and respiratory tract.
On the mucous membrane of the trachea there are cilia, which carry the larvae upward with their reflex movements.In this case, the receptors are irritated and a cough occurs, throwing the worm into the mouth, which is then spat out or swallowed, and returns to the intestines.
For your information!Cough due to ascariasis is usually a short-term phenomenon.However, if the infestation recurs, it can become almost permanent.
Giardiasis
Despite the fact that Giardia is a microscopic creature, it causes very serious damage to the body.Giardia's natural habitat is standing water.They enter the human body through consumption of dirty or poorly processed food, or by drinking unboiled milk or water.Transmission from infected people and animals is possible.
The main location of Giardia is the intestines.The parasite only takes 10 days from infection until the larvae begin to emerge from the eggs.Penetrating the intestinal wall, they enter the blood and reach the organs of the respiratory system, disrupting their function and causing coughing.
Lung coincidence
These flukes live in pairs in the lungs, forming cysts in the bronchi.Infestation occurs when eating crabs and crayfish infected with parasites.Once in the gastrointestinal tract, pulmonary fluke penetrates the peritoneum and reaches the lungs through the diaphragm, causing the patient to cough continuously.
Lungworms are small worms, which belong to the class of trematodes, “specialize” in parasitizing especially in the lungs.For example, this disease causes more serious problems with the respiratory system than roundworms.
At the site of its localization, an infiltrate appears and hemorrhage develops, as a result of which a cavity appears filled with rotting worm metabolites, dead parasites and lung tissue.The danger caused by lungworm disease is further exacerbated by the fact that the disease is long-lived and can live in the host's body for up to 20 years.
To overcome this dangerous parasite, treatment needs to be carried out under the strict supervision of a doctor.Only he can choose an effective drug, which should be different for each case.
However, the advantage in “danger” does not belong to lungworms, but to alveococcus and echinococcus larvae.This is a small tapeworm (up to 7 mm long), which is carried by wolves, coyotes, dogs, jackals, foxes, wild and domestic cats without causing any harm to themselves.
Trematode worms (digenetic worms) and trichinella roundworms cause allergic coughs, which can be very severe in children.
Runny nose due to worms and other parasitosis
A runny nose is less commonly caused by worms.These manifestations are not at all typical for helminthiasis.However, in some cases, parasites can cause colds and nasal congestion.
Sometimes pinworms, in rare cases, with the so-called perverse (random, uncharacteristic) localization, enter the nasal passages and cause a runny nose and nasal congestion.
If we talk about non-helmintic parasitic diseases, then as an example of an infestation that causes a runny nose and profuse mucous discharge from the nose, we can mention nasal myiasis, namely the larvae of nuisance flies and flies that settle in the nasal cavity.
Attention!A runny nose that is sometimes caused by Giardia is the result of the body's response in the form of an allergic reaction to Giardia waste.
Meanwhile, roundworms do not cause colds or nasal congestion.
Conclusion
If the cough occurs due to worms, treatment should include antiparasitic therapy aimed at destroying the worms.Taking flu pills in such cases means directing treatment not against the disease itself, but against its symptoms.