Surely many have heard of such a disease as echinococcosis. What it is? What are the causes of the development of the disease? What symptoms does it accompany and what danger is it associated with? This information will be of interest to many readers.
Echinococcosis - what is it?
Parasitic diseases can hardly be considered a rarity in the modern world. And often in medical practice they encounter a disease called echinococcosis. What it is? In fact, this is a relatively rare disease that develops against the background of penetration into the body of the larvae of the tapeworm Echinococcus glanulosus.
The disease is accompanied by the formation of cysts inside the human body, which spread, affecting certain organs, which, accordingly, leads to disruption of their work. In the absence of timely and proper treatment, the disease leads to severe, dangerous complications.
Epidemiology of the disease
As already mentioned, today echinococcosis is considered a relatively rare disease. On the other hand, it is extremely common in some countries and regions. For example,outbreaks of the disease are often observed in the countries of South America, including Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina. The disease is also often diagnosed in residents of North Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Southern Europe, India, Japan and some others.
As for Russia, here outbreaks of echinococcosis are mainly recorded in regions where animal husbandry is developed. These are the Samara, Orenburg, Volgograd and Rostov regions, as well as the Stavropol, Altai, Khabarovsk Territories, Tatarstan, Bashkortostan and some other zones. On the territory of Ukraine, the disease is spread mainly in the southern regions.
Description of the adult form of the pathogen
Echinococcus granulosis is the causative agent of a disease called echinococcosis. The photo shows the adult form of the parasite. In fact, this is the smallest tapeworm, whose body length does not exceed 8-9 mm. The sexually mature form of the worm has a head, neck and body, consisting of 3-4 segments. The head of the parasite is "equipped" with four suckers and two rows of hooks.
Getting into the body of the final host, echinococcus with the help of suckers and hooks is fixed on the mucous membrane of the small intestine, where it reaches puberty and begins to multiply. As a rule, the last segment on the body of the parasite contains eggs. These segments break off from time to time, as a result of which the eggs enter the external environment along with the animal's feces.
Echinococcal cyst and features of its life activity
Man is an intermediate host forechinococcus - in his body the parasite does not reach sexual maturity and does not multiply. That is why in modern medicine, the defeat of a person by this parasite is a kind of biological dead end.
After penetration into the body, the development of the larva of the worm begins. By the way, echinococcosis is most often diagnosed in children, since the likelihood of infection increases if hygiene rules are not followed, which is by no means uncommon in young patients. Under the influence of digestive juices, the embryo is released from the shell and penetrates into the mucous tissues of the gastrointestinal tract. Already from here, it easily enters the blood and lymph, together with the current of which it quickly spreads to various organs. Most often it is the liver and lungs, although any other structure can also be affected. Here the embryo is transformed into a bubble-shaped larva, which is called a cyst.
How does infection happen?
As already mentioned, the final owners of echinococcus are dogs, less often cats. Eggs of mature tapeworms are excreted along with faeces, then enter the external environment: on the ground, grass, vegetables, fruits, etc. Of course, you can catch the infection by eating unwashed food that has somehow come into contact with infected feces.
In addition, the pathogen enters the human body along with insufficiently fried or boiled meat. The infection is also transmitted through physical contact with infected dogs. By the way, that is why echinococcosis in children is quite common, because theyoften forget to wash their hands.
Main symptoms of the disease
Echinococcosis is most often diagnosed in children, although the likelihood of the onset of the disease in adulthood is also quite high. To date, it is customary to distinguish four stages of the development of the disease:
- Latent stage, in which there are practically no subjective symptoms. At this time, a person is infected, the oncosphere is localized and its gradual growth occurs. It is worth noting that the duration of this stage largely depends on the location of the cyst - in some people, the disease does not make itself felt for many years.
- At the second, initial stage of echinococcosis, subjective symptoms appear. It can be occasional soreness, discomfort, or weakness. Most often, patients attribute everything to general malaise, nutritional errors, etc.
- The third stage is accompanied by severe symptoms, which is associated with a significant increase in the size of the cyst. The formation begins to compress adjacent tissues, including blood vessels, nerve endings, bile ducts, etc.
- The fourth stage is said in cases where patients have complications. The most dangerous is the rupture of the cyst.
Hepatic disease
Most often, echinococcosis (photo above) affects the liver. According to statistics, in more than 70% of cases, the oncosphere of the pathogen is localized in the liver tissues. In the early stages of the diseaseproceeds without any symptoms.
In the second stage, symptoms such as nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite occur. Patients also complain of constant weakness and decreased performance. From time to time there are stabbing pains in the region of the right hypochondrium. Sometimes pain extends to the epigastric area. There are also changes in the stool, which is associated with a violation of the normal processes of digestion.
In the third stage, the patient's he alth deteriorates significantly. Perhaps the development of an abscess, severe pain in the upper abdomen, as well as fever. Rupture of a cyst is the most dangerous complication that liver echinococcosis can lead to. Treatment in this case should be carried out immediately, since the content of the cyst in the tissues and blood is fraught with an intense allergic reaction up to the development of anaphylactic shock.
Pulmonary echinococcosis
Echinococcosis of the lungs is the second most common form of this disease. As in the previous case, small cysts may not create any inconvenience. But as this structure grows, the tissues of the lung, bronchi, and blood vessels are compressed.
In the initial stages, echinococcosis of the lungs is accompanied by breathing problems. In particular, patients often complain of shortness of breath and occasional chest pain. In addition, there is a cough. At first, it is dry and disturbs the patient mainly at night. But then, during the cough, purulent sputum begins to stand out.
Cyst ruptureis extremely dangerous and is accompanied by severe cough, cyanosis, aspiration pneumonia and severe allergic reactions. If the cyst breaks into the pleura, there is a high probability of developing anaphylactic shock and instant death.
Animal echinococcosis
As already mentioned, ungulates are intermediate hosts for echinococcus, but dogs, wolves, and less often foxes act as final hosts. Animal echinococcosis can look different - it all depends on the number of cysts in the body, as well as the quality of pet care.
In the initial stages, as a rule, gradual exhaustion develops, which is associated with a violation of the digestive processes. Herbivorous ungulates often show symptoms of liver and lung damage. As for the final hosts of the parasite, they show signs of emaciation, as well as constant diarrhea, constipation, itching in the anus.
Modern diagnostic methods
Human echinococcosis is a rather dangerous disease. That is why the diagnosis is so important. Today, medicine offers many ways to detect the disease. The most informative analysis for echinococcosis is the so-called Katsoni reaction, which in 90% of cases gives correct results. During the procedure, a small amount of echinococcal fluid is injected under the skin of the patient. With a positive reaction, pronounced redness appears at the injection site.
Of course, the patient additionally takes blood, urine, and stool tests. Heldand serological tests, the specificity of which is quite high. All these studies help to establish the presence of echinococcosis.
But with such a disease, it is important to find the location of the cysts. For this purpose, various procedures are used, including computed tomography, angiography of the celiac artery (if liver echinococcosis is suspected), as well as scanning with radioactive isotopes and some other techniques.
Methods of treating the disease
Echinococcosis of the liver is most common in modern medicine. Treatment in any case is carried out exclusively by surgery. Taking antiparasitic drugs does not have the desired effect, since cysts still remain in the body, and there is always a risk of purulent damage. Naturally, conservative therapy is necessary, but is used as a preventive measure. Patients are prescribed medication before and after the removal of echinococcal cysts.
So how is echinococcosis treated? The operation is performed under general anesthesia and only after all cysts have been detected during the diagnostic process. During the procedure, it is extremely important to remove the pathogen completely, with all membranes and prevent its contents from getting into the surrounding tissues. The most effective surgical intervention is in the initial stages. If the human body is affected by a large number of cysts, then their removal is carried out in several stages: during the first operation, the most dangerous formations are eliminated, and after some time (usually from three tosix months) the procedure is repeated.
To prevent complications and inflammation after surgery, patients are prescribed antiparasitic and antibacterial drugs.
Are there effective prevention methods?
Unfortunately, there are no vaccines that can permanently protect against such a disease. However, following some preventive recommendations, you can reduce the risk of developing a disease such as echinococcosis. What is it and what does effective prevention look like?
Firstly, it is extremely important to adhere to all sanitary and hygienic standards in agricultural areas where animals are raised. Since dogs are the most common source of the pathogen for humans, it is necessary to regularly conduct appropriate checks on watchdogs.
As for personal prevention, experts recommend washing hands thoroughly before eating, as well as after any direct contact with an animal. Do not drink water from natural reservoirs or polluted sources, eat unwashed berries, fruits and vegetables, and eat undercooked meat products.
