What do you know about human parasitic diseases? The variety of human parasites is not limited to internal helminths.
There are certain types of parasites that penetrate and live under a person's skin, causing the same unpleasant symptoms as internal parasites.
In addition, the variety is not limited to helminthiasis - there are ticks, insects and protozoa.
Each of them has certain symptoms and manifestations that you should be aware of.
It is equally important to know how to get rid of subcutaneous parasites.
Varieties of parasitic skin diseases
What parasites can live under human skin? The most diverse, including insects, helminths, ticks and protozoa single-celled organisms. The lesions of the human skin by different types of parasites are divided into a separate category of parasitic diseases.
Each group of diseases is united by characteristic pathogens:
- The simplest organisms cause protozoan skin diseases.
- Ticks cause acaric skin lesions.
- Insects can cause entomotic skin lesions.
- Helminthiasis develops as a result of helminth infection.
All these pathogens of parasitic diseases of human skin are equally unpleasant 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 for countries with hot and humid climates.
Diseases caused by protozoa
Leishmaniasis
Leishmaniasis is caused by the simplest, single-celled pathogens transmitted by mosquitoes. A person infected with leishmaniasis becomes a reservoir for 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 manifests itself as deep ulcers or pustules and extensive skin lesions. The mucocutaneous form of the disease leads to significant deformations of appearance, especially on the face. Respiratory edema in leishmaniasis can be fatal.
Leishmaniasis occurs in 90 countries around the world and is a very common disease in Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Peru.
Diseases caused by ticks
Demodectic mange
A disease caused by a parasite that lives under the skin in the sebaceous glands and follicles of human living hair. This is a microscopic mite - demodex. It is localized mainly on the eyelids, facial skin and ear canals. Rarely - on the chest and back.
Demodex damage causes complicated acne, a dermatitis that worsens in the spring and fall. The skin looks red, hyperemic, uneven, inflamed. The ciliated edge of the eyelid is usually swollen, red, the lashes are glued together, there is a peeling discharge along the edge of the eyelid, and the loss of lashes is characteristic. Sometimes the disease occurs without obvious manifestations, which is why the tick is considered conditionally pathogenic. Demodicosis is usually exacerbated in people with impaired immunity, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, lungs and metabolic disorders.
Scabies
Another ubiquitous disease caused by mites is called itching. These mites gnaw passages in human skin in which they lay eggs. The development of an adult tick is accompanied by a complex cycle. This process usually occurs at night, so at this time the itching of the skin intensifies. The main diagnostic symptom for the presence of parasites under a person's skin looks like double red small dots located nearby. These are double passages bitten by a tick.
The disease is complicated by various infections that the patient tries to relieve the itching: streptoderma, nodular seals, blood crusts around scratches, rashes in the form of blood blisters and other skin lesions. Complicated scabies can resemble urticaria, pyoderma, dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis.
Infection usually occurs with prolonged contact with sick people (scabies has been shown to require skin-to-skin contact lasting up to 30 minutes; you should not rule out a fairly low chance of infection when using common household items).
Diseases caused by insects
All skin diseases caused by biplanes are collectively called myiasis.
Wolfarthiosis
The disease is caused by an insect called wolfarth fly, which deposits larvae in the mucous membranes or wounds on the human body. The larvae destroy the tissues, releasing a special enzyme, causing severe pain, necrosis, swelling, pus and gangrene of the affected tissues. They usually parasitize in the eyes, nose, ears. The Wolfhart fly is widespread in countries with hot and temperate climates.
Diseases caused by helminths
Heartworm disease
Disease caused by roundworms. The source of infection are pets - cats and dogs. The carrier is a mosquito. After its bite, sexually mature individuals of nematodes begin to develop in the human body, which usually parasitize under human skin. Insect bites become thicker, inflamed and itchy. A characteristic feature of the pathogen is its ability to move under the skin, due to which the disease is accompanied by a sensation of movement creeping inside the inflamed seal. Sometimes a nematode can be seen under the skin; cases of an individual coming out of the mucous membrane of the eye have been described.
Allergic reactions, fever, nausea and weakness may be accompanying symptoms.
Strongyloidiasis
A disease caused by the larvae of parasites that invade a person's skin if he walks barefoot on the ground. Outbreaks of strongyloidiasis are found in Georgia, Ukraine, Krasnodar, Stavropol Territory. Roundworm larvae penetrate the skin and migrate from below, causing redness, itchy skin and the development of red blisters.
Treatment recommendations
General recommendations for the treatment of diseases caused by one or another human subcutaneous parasite have been developed. The most relevant for our region is the treatment of strongyloidiasis, scabies and demodicosis. Treatment is prescribed after diagnosis of the disease and only by a specialist. Some complications and manifestations of the disease require an individual approach to treatment.
- Helminthiasis is recommended to be treated with antiparasitic drugs.
- Itching, ointment, cream and other effective remedies are used to treat itching. In the fight against scabies, a treatment regimen and a system of preventive measures for contact persons have been developed.
- Demodex treatment is performed with complex measures to strengthen the immune system, treatment of gastrointestinal diseases and other procedures. Scabies ointments are used directly on the skin, as well as various cosmetic procedures.
Subcutaneous parasitic diseases require treatment efforts, so it is best to prevent infection by applying basic rules of personal hygiene. It is not superfluous to know the general symptoms that accompany such diseases, so as not to come into close contact with sick people.