Medicines from worms( pills and other remedies) - Causes, symptoms and treatment. MF.

Diseases that arise as a result of the vital activity of parasitic worms( in common parlance of "worms") in the human body, are united under the general name "helminthiases".Helminths parasitizing in the human body can be divided into three types: roundworms( nematodes), flatworms( trematodes) and tapeworms( cestodes), and also at the site of parasitization - intestinal and extra-intestinal. Helminths are not only known to all "pinworms", there are a lot of types of worms and they need to be treated with different drugs, which kills some, is not suitable for getting rid of others.

Most anthelminthic drugs have a fairly fast and reliable effect and allow you to get rid of worms once and for all. Nevertheless, these drugs are not intended for self-treatment, and under certain circumstances are prescribed only in a hospital under medical supervision. And although the toxicity of modern drugs is minimized, the incidence of side effects can not be completely ruled out. That is why the treatment of helminthiasis is a treatment prescribed by a doctor.

Essentially important before the beginning of treatment is the determination of the helminth species , i.e.its belonging to one or another of the classes listed above. Specific analyzes are carried out for this purpose.

What is dangerous for the wrong reception of drugs "from worms"?

It is very important to strictly follow the recommended for each drug intake scheme and the duration of the course. When taking the drug in an inefficiently effective dose, many parasitic worms do not die, but begin to migrate from their parasitic organs to other organs and systems, creating life-threatening conditions, for example, from the intestine to crawl into the appendix, pancreas, liver, lungs or even exitin the free abdominal cavity. There may be a false impression of a cure when, instead of killing a parasite, its oviposition is inhibited and tests give a negative result. The same goes for the treatment of herbs and folk remedies. Moreover, in order to achieve an anthelmintic effect, when consuming worm herbs, a high concentration is required, and this inevitably increases their toxicity and the development of side effects. Do not forget about contraindications. Such herbs as, for example, tansy and wormwood are contraindicated for children under 12 years old, with diseases of the kidneys, heart, liver, uterine bleeding.

Is the medication prophylaxis of helminthiases justified?

This question is often asked by pet owners, especially if children live in the same apartment with them, or family members of a sick person. Prevention of helminthiosis is definitely necessary, but not a medical .Anti-worm drugs are prescribed only after the discovery of certain parasites or their eggs. Without this, there are no grounds for taking medication "from worms".Prevention is reduced to personal hygiene and timely isolation and treatment of the sick.

How do drugs "from worms" work?

These are chemotherapeutic drugs that realize their effect on biological structures of worms and biochemical processes in their tissues:

- block the transmission of nerve impulses to muscle cells and cause persistent helminth paralysis, after which it is excreted from the body with calves. So act pyrantel, piperazine, prazikvantel;
- persistently disrupt the absorption of glucose by helminth cells, causing their death( mebendazole);
- disrupt the cells of the intestinal canal helminth( albendazole);
- combined action: paralyzes helminths and disrupts biochemical processes in their cells( levamisole).

Preparations for the treatment of the most common helminthiases:

Preparations for the treatment of invasions of roundworms( enterobiasis, ascariasis)

Piperazine. The drug of choice during pregnancy. Completely absorbed when ingested. Can be used in children under 1 year. It is assigned a three-day course.
Contraindications: organic diseases of the brain and spinal cord, individual intolerance, chronic renal failure.

Pirantel ( Helminthox, Combatrin, Nemocide).It is also effective in ankylostomiasis, trichocephalosis, non-katorosis. Pirantel blocks the sensitive helminths neuromuscular transmission, causes spastic paralysis of their muscles, ensures the expulsion from the body of worms. This means that in the first days of treatment with a chair, a lot of living paralyzed helminths will be allocated, which imposes a responsibility to closely monitor hygiene.
It is not recommended for children under 2 years old and nursing mothers( penetrates into milk), although it is not practically absorbed into the digestive tract. Low toxic. It is excreted with a stool and urine. A single dose must be repeated after 2 weeks, since the pyrantel does not act on the larvae.
Contraindications: allergic reactions, liver failure, myasthenia gravis.

Levamisole ( decaris).Along with the anthelmintic effect, it has immunomodulating activity, stimulates the production of protective antibodies and blood cells. It is highly active with ascariasis when taking one dose( one of the drugs of choice), non-katorosis, ankylostomiasis.
Contraindications: decrease in the number of leukocytes in the blood, individual intolerance, hepatic or renal insufficiency, leukemia, pregnancy, breastfeeding.
It is prescribed under strict medical supervision with preliminary clinical and biochemical blood tests and subsequent control of blood leukocytes. Incompatible with alcohol, including, within a day after the end of admission.

Drugs of a wide spectrum of action

Albendazole( Nemozole) .Effective in ascariasis, enterobiasis, trichocephalosis, opisthorchiasis, strongyloidiasis, as well as mixed helminthiases. The drug of choice for larval forms of cestodes, echinococcosis and shadeosis, with strongyloidiasis.
Not recommended in pregnancy, during breastfeeding, at the age of 6 years, with cirrhosis, retinal diseases, allergic reactions. The drug is able to inhibit bone marrow hematopoiesis, therefore, when treating with high doses, it is necessary to monitor the clinical analysis of blood. Women before the start of treatment should exclude a possible pregnancy and provide contraception for the period of taking the drug.

Mebendazole ( vermox, telmox 100, vermakar, vormin mebeks).The drug of choice for enterobiosis and trichocephalosis. It is prescribed in the treatment of larval stages in echinococcosis and alveococcosis, accumulates in larval cysts. Indication: enterobiosis, ascariasis, ankylostomiasis, trichocephalosis, trichinosis, echinococcosis, polyinvasia.
Contraindications: pregnancy, breastfeeding. Liver failure. Children under 2 years old, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, individual intolerance.
With prolonged admission, control of the analysis of peripheral blood, liver function and kidney function is mandatory. During the day after taking, you should not drink alcohol, fatty foods, take laxatives.

Praziquantel ( biltricid, azinox, cysticide, tsesol).Effective with extra-intestinal forms of trematodes( schistosomiasis, opisthorchiasis, clonorchosis, paragonimosis), as well as intestinal cestodiasis( diphyllobothriasis, teniarinhoz, teniosis, hymenolepiasis), with neurocysticercosis.
The reception scheme is set depending on the type of pathogen.
During the reception period and within 24 hours after its termination, it is necessary to refrain from driving and other dangerous activities.
Contraindications: hepatic insufficiency, children under 4 years old, first trimester of pregnancy, breastfeeding, cysticercosis of the liver, eye, hypersensitivity to the drug.

Features of treatment of anthrobiosis( pinworm)

Separately, we should highlight the features of treatment of enterobiasis. This is one of the few types of helminthiasis, in which medical treatment should be carried out to the entire family of the patient or to members of the team that are close to him. This is due to the fact that pinworms, creeping out at night from the anus, allocate a large number of eggs that can get on the laundry, on the fingers of a person and in the subungual bed with involuntary scratching at night. And this, in turn, leads to their spread in the external environment - subsidence in the dust particles on upholstered furniture, walls, window curtains, children's toys, where they can be a source of repeated infection for several years. Therefore, great attention should be paid to hygiene measures. A daily, thorough, wet, general cleaning in the apartment must be carried out. Initially, dust is collected from furniture using a vacuum cleaner, then the floor and furniture are washed with water with household soap( household cleaning products, including chlorine, are ineffective).Bed linen and underwear should be washed at a maximum temperature and ironed. Hands should be washed with laundry soap in the morning, after visiting the toilet, before eating. To children - shortly to cut fingernails or nails, for the night to put tightly fitting cowards and daily them to change on pure or clean.

Almost any medicinal preparations from worms have a detrimental effect on the liver or kidneys of a person, even those that are poorly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract, therefore it is impossible to take them without a doctor's instructions, and even more so for prevention.

Physician Therapist SE