A tapeworm in the intestines often causes mild symptoms. Moderate to severe symptoms may include stomach pain and diarrhea. Larval cysts can cause serious disease if they are in a person's brain, liver, lungs, heart or eyes.
Adult worms produce eggs which are secreted in sputum or faeces. Humans are usually infected by eating the second intermediate host, fresh water crab or crayfish, if raw or lightly cooked. After ingestion the larvae penetrate the intestinal wall and migrate to the lung parenchyma.
Worms then travel from the belly into the chest. There they can cause respiratory symptoms, such as: Cough. Shortness of breath.
Lung fluke infections are treated with praziquantel, a drug used to eliminate flukes from the body (called an anthelmintic drug). An alternative is triclabendazole. If the brain is infected, corticosteroids may also be given. They help control the inflammation that develops when the drug kills the flukes.
What are the signs and symptoms? Adult flukes living in the lung cause lung disease. After 2-15 days, the initial signs and symptoms may be diarrhea and abdominal pain. This may be followed several days later by fever, chest pain, and fatigue.
Definitive diagnosis is based on the demonstration of eggs in sputum samples, BAL fluid, or lung biopsy specimens. Eggs are not present until 2–3 months after infection. Eggs or juvenile forms or adult worms can also be demonstrated in a subcutaneous lump or aspirated pleural effusion.
A definitive diagnosis of a lungworm infection is usually made by identification of parasite stages in the feces of an infected animal. The eggs of Eucoleus aerophilus and Eucoleus boehmi may be detected in a routine fecal flotation test or in an examination of saliva or nasal discharges.
Larvae hatch from the eggs in your small intestine and then go through the intestinal wall to travel to the heart and lungs via the bloodstream or lymphatic system. After maturing for about 10 to 14 days in your lungs, the larvae break into your airway and travel up the throat, where they're coughed up and swallowed.
People can be infected when they deliberately or accidentally eat a raw snail or slug that contains the lung worm larvae or if they eat unwashed lettuce or other raw leafy vegetables that have been contaminated by the slime of infected snails or slugs.
If left untreated, it can be fatal in severe cases. The good news is that lungworm is usually treatable. Dogs cannot pass the disease directly from dog to dog but they will pass the larvae in their faeces. This then infects more slugs and snails who are eaten by more dogs, so the disease can spread quickly.
Tapeworms can cause digestive problems including abdominal pain, loss of appetite, weight loss, and upset stomach. The most visible sign of taeniasis is the active passing of proglottids (tapeworm segments) through the anus and in the feces.
Lungworm is not common but owners should discuss the risks with their veterinary surgeon who can then provide the correct preventive treatment.
MYTH: No one ever died from Rat Lungworm disease.
People rarely die from Rat Lungworm but it does happen. There have been deaths in Thailand, China and Australia as well as probable Rat Lungworm deaths in Hawaii.
Migrating, at 1 week, as L4 out of the intestinal wall via the bloodstream to the lungs. Become mature adults: slender white worms up to 8cm long, living in the lungs.
Rarely, the larvae can stay in your throat area and that's when you may develop “tingling throat syndrome” and potentially a cough.
To diagnose a tapeworm infection, doctors will collect and examine a stool sample on 3 different days to check for tapeworm eggs or pieces of worm. They may also do a blood test. If a child could have cysticercosis, the doctor might recommend a CT (CAT) scan or MRI of the brain or other organs to look for cysts.
A tapeworm infection is usually diagnosed by finding eggs or tapeworm segments in the stool. Your doctor may ask you to bring in a sample so a lab can look for eggs, larvae, or tapeworm segments. A blood test can spot antigens, foreign substances that let your doctor know your body is trying to fight the infection.
Imaging tests
If you're infested with worms, the mass of worms may be visible in an X-ray of the abdomen. In some cases, a chest X-ray can reveal the larvae in the lungs.
The most important parasitic conditions that affect the lung are hydatid disease, paragonimiasis, schistosomiasis, ascariasis, hookworm infestations, dirofilariasis, tropical pulmonary eosinophilia, toxocariasis, amebiasis and malignant tertian malaria.
Signs and Symptoms
People may experience nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain a few hours to a few days after ingestion. Symptoms can then progress to headache and other neurologic symptoms. Non-specific symptoms include fever, light sensitivity, muscle pain, fatigue, and insomnia.
No. Lungworm eggs and larvae cannot be readily seen by looking at dog feces with the naked eye.
Dog lungworm can be serious, potentially even fatal, if left untreated. If you're worried it may be causing your pet to be sick contact your vet as soon as possible or, out of hours, find your nearest Vets Now pet emergency clinic or Vets Now 24/7 hospital.
Worming treatments usually come in the form of tablets or spot-ons, and may manage a range of parasites including lungworms.
If your doctor confirms you have a tapeworm infection, follow their instructions to lessen the risk of complications. If left untreated, there's the risk of developing an invasive infection which can affect your tissue and organs. This can lead to brain swelling, inflammation, and intestinal blockage.
Cysticercosis is an infection caused by the larvae of the parasite Taenia solium. This infection occurs after a person swallows tapeworm eggs. The larvae get into tissues such as muscle and brain, and form cysts there (these are called cysticerci).