Ascariasis symptoms in adults

When it comes to ascariasis, many people think that it is a disease that only children will have. Of course, the incidence of ascariasis is very high among children, but ascariasis is not exclusive to children. In fact, adults can also be troubled by ascariasis. It’s just that many people don’t know much about adult ascariasis. So what are the symptoms of adult ascariasis? Let’s take a look at the introduction in this article.

Ascariasis is a very common parasitic disease in the human body. It not only consumes a large amount of nutrients in our body, but also causes severe abdominal pain and gastrointestinal dysfunction. Sometimes it can induce a series of dangerous complications such as intestinal obstruction, intestinal perforation, biliary ascariasis, etc., which seriously endanger human health.

1. Ascaris larvae pneumonia: When a small number of Ascaris larvae migrate in the lungs, there may be no symptoms. If you eat vegetables or other foods containing a large number of infectious roundworm eggs in a short period of time, systemic and pulmonary symptoms may appear after a latent period of 7 to 10 days. Symptoms include cough, sputum, hemoptysis, fever, chills, fatigue, accompanied by chest tightness, shortness of breath and other symptoms similar to acute upper respiratory tract infection. Severe cases may experience asthma-like attacks, manifested by chest pain, foreign body sensation in the throat, wheezing, and orthopnea. A few may have blood in sputum, nosebleeds, hoarseness, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Physical examination revealed dry and wet rales in both lungs, and occasional signs of local pulmonary consolidation. Chest X-ray examination may show deepening of the shadows at both hilar pulmonary sites and increased lung striae, which usually disappear within 1 to 2 weeks. Sputum may contain neutrophils and Charcot-Leyden crystals and occasionally larvae. Blood eosinophils may increase significantly. After the disease lasts for 7 to 10 days, the above symptoms gradually disappear. Acute ascariasis, asthma and eosinophilia are clinically known as pulmonary ascariasis, that is, simple pulmonary eosinophilic infiltration.

2. Intestinal ascariasis Adults with intestinal ascariasis usually have no special symptoms, but may also experience emotional instability, irritability, dizziness, decreased work ability, etc. People with a large number of roundworms in their intestines may experience gastrointestinal symptoms of varying degrees, such as increased appetite or anorexia, picky eating, and even pica. Children with the disease often have loss of appetite and nausea; they often have sudden onset of transient dull pain or colic around the umbilicus, which often recurs at irregular intervals and is not accompanied by abdominal muscle tension and tenderness. A small number of children may experience symptoms similar to peptic ulcers, but the symptoms disappear after anthelmintic treatment. Infants and young children often suffer from indigestion. A small number of children may vomit ascaris due to high fever or other reasons, or pass ascaris from the anus. Severely infected children may suffer from malnutrition, developmental delay, mental retardation, skin itching, teeth grinding or convulsions. Very few patients may experience neurogenic vomiting, persistent rash, visual impairment, hearing loss, muscle paralysis, cutaneous angioedema and thrombocytopenic purpura.

Gastric and duodenal ascariasis may cause recurrent episodes of abdominal fullness, belching, dull or severe pain in the upper abdomen, often accompanied by lack of appetite, acid reflux, nausea, and vomiting. There is often a history of vomiting ascarids, and occasionally vomiting blood and black stools.

There are fewer signs of intestinal ascariasis, and there may be mild, but inconsistent, deep tenderness around the umbilicus when there is abdominal pain. In children with thin abdominal wall fat, intestinal peristaltic waves can be seen, and deep pressure may reveal cord-like intestinal patterns. Children with severe infection are thin and have a distended abdomen.

3. Allergic reactions Ascaris allergens can cause allergic reactions in the host's skin, conjunctiva, and intestinal mucosa, manifested as urticaria, abdominal distension and pain, and conjunctivitis. Literature reports that ascaris infection is a trigger for asthma in children due to allergies to plant pollens and other diseases.

That’s all I have to say about the symptoms of adult ascariasis. Generally speaking, this disease has many symptoms, so everyone must pay attention to their own condition in life. Once these symptoms of adult ascariasis appear in life, you must go to a regular hospital for diagnosis and treatment in time.