Yes, worms can live in the human brain, causing serious conditions like neurocysticercosis from tapeworm larvae, or rarer cases like the recent discovery of a live Ophidascaris robertsi roundworm in an Australian woman's brain, though it's a very uncommon occurrence. These parasitic infections happen when humans ingest microscopic eggs from contaminated food or surfaces, allowing larvae to travel through the bloodstream to the brain, forming cysts or causing inflammation.
The infection is treated with albendazole or praziquantel (medications used to treat parasitic worm infections, called antihelminthic medications). However, if a person has many cysts, antihelminthic medications may kill many organisms, causing the brain to swell significantly.
(The infection caused by cysts is called cysticercosis or, when the cysts form in the brain, neurocysticercosis.) These cysts cause few symptoms until the cysts degenerate and the larvae die, triggering inflammation, swelling, and symptoms such as headaches, seizures, personality changes, and mental impairment.
Neurocysticercosis is a parasitic infection of the central nervous system and caused by the pork tapeworm Taenia solium. Humans become infected after consuming undercooked food or water contaminated with tapeworm eggs, or through poor hygiene practices.
You know you might have parasites through digestive issues (diarrhea, bloating, pain), fatigue, unexplained weight loss, skin problems (rashes, itchiness), sleep disturbances (insomnia, teeth grinding), increased appetite, muscle aches, or even seeing worms or eggs in your stool; however, many infections have few or no symptoms, so a doctor's diagnosis via stool sample, blood tests, or other imaging is needed for confirmation.
Brain and other nervous system symptoms
Some of the most common signs of a parasitic infection include:
The long, threadlike worms can be found in spaces and veins surrounding the brain. Adult male worms are greenish-yellow to brown in color and up to 6.2 cm (2.4 in) long and 0.2 mm (0.008 in) wide. Females are darker brown to red to black in color and up to 9 cm (3.5 in) long and 0.25 wide (0.01 in).
A man was hospitalized with worsening migraines only to find out they were caused by parasitic tapeworm larvae in his brain — and researchers believe he was infected by eating undercooked bacon.
Brain tumors are among the most fatal cancers with substantial morbidity and mortality worldwide. Epidemiologic evidence suggests that infectious agents, especially, protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii could be a possible risk factor or contributor.
Pediculosis of the scalp
Pediculosis capitis (head lice) occurs with an infestation of the scalp hair with the human head louse (Pediculus humanus capitis), an external obligate parasite that inhabits the scalp and feeds by sucking blood. Any age may be affected, however it is most prevalent among schoolchildren.
This infection occurs after a person swallows tapeworm eggs. The larvae get into tissues such as muscle, brain, and eye, and form cysts called cysticerci. When cysts are found in the brain or central nervous system, it is called neurocysticercosis.
However, some common signs and symptoms of scalp parasitic infections include:
How Is a Tapeworm Infection Treated? Doctors treat tapeworm infections with prescription anti-parasite drugs. Often, one dose is enough. For cysticercosis that causes hydrocephalus (excess fluid in the brain), doctors may put in a shunt to drain excess fluid.
X-ray, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan, Computerized Axial Tomography scan (CAT) These tests are used to look for some parasitic diseases that may cause lesions in the organs.
Topical ivermectin offers a simple solution to manual removal of larvae and can be considered in the treatment of nasal myiasis. Ivermectin activates chloride channels in the muscles and nervous system of invertebrates, resulting in somatic muscle paralysis and death of the parasites.
Chagas disease is often called a silent killer because many people don't realize they have it until complications from the infection kill them.
10 Warning Signs of Parasitic Infections
Symptoms of other worm infections
Early symptoms of PAM can include headache, fever, nausea, and vomiting. PAM progresses rapidly. Most people with PAM die within 1 to 18 days after symptoms begin. It usually leads to coma and death after 5 days.
The condition, known as neurocysticercosis, is a brain infection linked to larvae from pork tapeworms. It's rare: It hospitalizes roughly 1,000 to 2,000 people every year in the U.S.
Parasitic infections of the CNS are indolent and often life threatening, hence, an early diagnosis is imperative. While brain biopsy and laboratory analysis remain the gold standard for diagnosis, neuroimaging contributes significantly to diagnosis and follow-up.
Symptoms of parasitic brain invasion depend on the location but may include seizures, weakness, or neuropsychiatric disturbances.
Some parasites are visually comparable to undigested foods that can appear in the stool, namely germinated bean sprouts; physicians should not only be mindful of such similarities, but should also take a full dietary history and consider any such correlations before requesting microbiologic analysis.