What do you know about human parasitic diseases? The variety of human parasites is not limited to internal helminths.
There are some types of parasites that penetrate and live under a person's skin, causing the same unpleasant symptoms as internal parasites.
Furthermore, the diversity is not limited to helminthiases alone: there are ticks, insects and protozoa.
Each of them has certain symptoms and manifestations that you should be aware of.
It is also equally important to know how to get rid of subcutaneous parasites.
Variety of parasitic skin diseases
What Kind of Parasites Can Live Under Human Skin? The most diverse, including insects, helminths, ticks and protozoa single-celled organisms. Human skin lesions caused by various types of parasites are distinguished into a separate category of parasitic diseases.
Each group of diseases is united by characteristic pathogens:
- The simplest organisms cause protozoal skin diseases.
- Ticks cause acariasis lesions of the skin.
- Insects can cause entomotic skin lesions.
- Helminthiases develop due to helminth infection.
All these pathogens of parasitic diseases of the human skin are equally unsightly and require diagnosis and treatment. Long-term neglected forms can lead to irreparable consequences from blindness to death. Fortunately, it can be added that most of the list of parasites living under human skin is typical mainly of countries with hot and humid climates.
Diseases caused by protozoa
leishmaniasis
Leishmaniasis is caused by the simpler single-celled pathogens carried by mosquitoes. A person infected with leishmaniasis becomes a reservoir for the further spread of the infection. After being bitten by a mosquito, which is the main host of Leishmania, a person develops cutaneous or visceral leishmaniasis. Cutaneous leishmaniasis occurs with deep ulcers or pustules and extensive skin lesions. The mucocutaneous form of the disease leads to significant deformations of the appearance, especially of the face. Airway edema in leishmaniasis can be fatal.
Leishmaniasis is present in 90 countries around the world and is a very common disease in Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Peru.
Diseases caused by ticks
Demodecosis
A disease caused by a parasite that lives under the skin in the sebaceous glands and human hair follicles. This is a microscopic mite - demodex. It is mainly localized on the eyelids, facial skin and ear canals. Rarely - on the chest and back.
The damage of Demodex causes complicated acne, dermatitis, which is exacerbated in the spring and autumn. The skin appears red, hyperemic, bumpy, inflamed. The ciliated edge of the eyelid is usually swollen, red, the eyelashes are stuck together, along the edge of the eyelid there are losses in the form of crusts, and the loss of the eyelashes is characteristic. Sometimes the disease proceeds without noticeable manifestations, so the tick is considered conditionally pathogenic. Usually, demodicosis is exacerbated in people with reduced immunity, with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, lungs and metabolic disorders.
Scabies
Another ubiquitous disease caused by mites called itching. These mites gnaw passages in human skin, where they lay their eggs. The development of an adult tick is accompanied by a complex cycle. Usually this process occurs at night, so at this time the itching of the skin intensifies. The main diagnostic symptom of the presence of parasites under the skin of a person resembles double red dots located nearby. These are double passes gnawed by a tick.
The disease is complicated by various infections that the patient brings in an attempt to relieve itching: streptoderma, nodular seals, blood scabs around the scratches, rashes in the form of bloody blisters and other skin lesions. Complicated scabies can resemble urticaria, pyoderma, dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis.
Infection usually occurs through prolonged contact with sick people (scabies has been shown to require skin-to-skin contact, lasting up to 30 minutes; you shouldn't discount the rather low probability of infection when using common household items) .
Diseases caused by insects
All skin diseases caused by diptera are collectively called myiasis.
Wolfartiosi
The disease is caused by an insect called the wolfarth fly, which lays larvae in the mucous membranes or wounds of the human body. The larvae destroy the tissues, releasing a special enzyme, causing severe pain, necrosis, edema, pus and gangrene of the affected tissues. They usually parasitize in the eyes, nose, ears. The wolfarth fly is widespread in countries with warm and temperate climates.
Diseases caused by helminths
heartworm disease
A disease caused by round helminths. The source of the infection is pets - dogs and cats. The courier is a mosquito. After its bite, sexually mature individuals of nematodes begin to develop in the human body, which, as a rule, parasitize under the human skin. The insect bite becomes thicker, inflamed and itchy. A feature of the pathogen is its ability to move under the skin, so the disease is accompanied by a sensation of movement, which crawls inside the inflamed seal. Sometimes a roundworm can be seen under the skin; cases of an individual emerging from the mucous membrane of the eye are described.
Allergic reactions, fever, nausea, and weakness can be accompanying symptoms.
Strongyloidosis
Disease caused by parasite larvae that invade the skin of a person walking barefoot on the ground. Strongyloidosis outbreaks are found in Georgia, Ukraine, Krasnodar, Stavropol Territory. Roundworm larvae invade the skin and migrate underneath, causing redness, itching of the skin and development of red blisters.
Treatment recommendations
General recommendations have been developed for the treatment of diseases caused by one or another human subcutaneous parasite. The most relevant for our region is the treatment of strongyloidosis, scabies and demodicosis. Treatment is prescribed after the diagnosis of the disease and only by a specialist. Some complications and manifestations of the disease require an individual approach to treatment.
- It is recommended to treat helminthiasis with antiparasitic drugs.
- For the treatment of itching, ointments, creams and other effective remedies are used. In the fight against scabies, a treatment regimen and a system of preventive measures have been developed for contact persons.
- Demodex treatment is carried out with complex measures to strengthen the immune system, treat gastrointestinal diseases and other procedures. Ointments for the treatment of scabies are used directly for the skin, as well as various cosmetic procedures.
Subcutaneous parasitic diseases require efforts to be treated, so it is best to prevent infection by applying the basic rules of personal hygiene. It is not superfluous to know the common symptoms accompanying such diseases, in order not to get into close contact with the sick.