Types and symptoms of subcutaneous parasites in humans

There are several parasites that can inhabit human skin. For the first time such worms were found in India but now they are found in other latitudes. Parasites under the skin cause a lot of discomfort to a person and require treatment. They are not as dangerous as worms in other organs, but with a long course of the disease, they can lead to serious complications. In our article we will list all types of subcutaneous parasites, the symptoms of the diseases they cause.

Variants of subcutaneous parasites and methods of infection

If you want to know who is crawling under the skin, then the following subcutaneous parasites are found in humans:

1. Dirofilariasis. This disorder provokes the larval stage of the nematode. Infection occurs when a mosquito (lice, flea or tick) bites, which is a carrier of the disease. A sexually mature individual reaches a length of 30 cm and the larva of this parasite is microscopic. After infection, it develops under the skin of a person for 3 months. Domestic cats and dogs can also transmit the infection.
2. If we list which parasites live under the skin, then we can not fail to mention the filarias. Infection is caused by certain types of nematodes. In this case, various diseases occur: onchocerciasis, dipetalonematosis, loiasis and mansonellosis. Carriers of worms and their intermediate hosts are insects (mosquitoes, mosquitoes, horseflies, etc. ). They infect human filariasis with larvae, as a result of which worms appear in the skin.
3. Another skin parasite in humans is cysticercus larvae. They cause cysticercosis. The invasion takes place through the intestines, where worms penetrate with dirty hands, water or food. Cysticercus is an oval vesicle that contains the inside of the parasite's scolex. Subcutaneous worms can change from round to fusiform. Man acts as a middle master.
4. Schistosomiasis is a disease caused by worms in a person from the order of trematodes. These are fly worms up to 2 cm long. The larvae of this parasite, which can swim in water, are cercariae. They can penetrate the human body directly through the skin. This infection can live in any organ, including under the skin.
5. Rishta is another worm under the skin. These white worms cause dracunculiasis and are classified as large nematodes. Their intermediate hosts are aquatic copepods. First, the parasite enters the human stomach, and then from the retroperitoneal space it penetrates the skin. Males reach a length of 10 cm, and females - 120 cm.

Symptoms of dirofilariasis

The larvae of this parasite with the bloodstream can spread throughout the body and settle in the eyes, pulmonary artery, heart, serous cavities, peri-renal adipose tissue and under the skin. If there is an invasion of a type of worm called Dirofilaria repens, the conjunctiva or the subcutaneous fat is affected.

The signs and symptoms of this disease are as follows:

• painful seals appear at the site of the insect bite;
• within a few days in a third of patients there is a displacement of the seal by 20-30 cm from the bite site;
• a person may feel throbbing, burning and itching at the site of the bite;
• there is a feeling of crawling and wiggling under the skin;
• periods of remission are followed by episodes of exacerbation;
• the subcutaneous worm induces the appearance of abscesses and abscesses (inside them lives a worm in the connecting capsule);
• sometimes the abscesses break up on their own and the white parasites crawl out of the skin.

If the conjunctiva is damaged, the following symptoms are present:

• swelling, itching and watery eyes;
• a feeling that a foreign body is present in the eye or in the eyelid;
• a person can not fully open the eyelid;
• vision deteriorates;
• a worm can be seen under the conjunctiva;
• a lump is visible under the skin of the eyelid;
• the person has a crawling sensation under the skin or in the eye;
• if the parasite penetrates the eyeball, diplopia and bulging of the eye occur.

Important! Dirofilariasis is accompanied by neuroses, fear and insomnia. In addition, the patient develops irritability, headache, general weakness and other signs.

Symptoms of filariasis

After invasion, filariasis can develop over several years. Different symptoms and signs can develop depending on the form of the disease. Common to these parasitic diseases will be the occurrence of sores and skin rashes, damage to eyes and lymph nodes, fever, development of elephantiasis of the scrotum and limbs as these are muscle parasites.

Onchocerciasis

With onchocerciasis, parasites in human muscles manifest themselves with the following symptoms:

• itchy skin;
• fever;
• weakness;
• dryness and peeling of the skin;
• cutaneous hyperpigmentation (genitals, bones, axillary and groin folds);
• papular rash;
• erysipelas;
• papules can form long-lasting wounds;
• under the skin, worms cause atrophy of hair follicles, sweat glands and epidermis;
• painful fibrous nodules form under the skin;
• with eye damage develops glaucoma, iridocyclitis, conjunctivitis, corneal cyst, keratitis and other eye diseases.

Dipetalonematosis

These subcutaneous worms in humans cause the following symptoms:

• enlarged lymph nodes;
• erythematous or maculopapular rash;
• dizziness;
• fever;
• swelling of the lower extremities, face and genitals;
• joint pain;
• pain in the heart;
• symptoms of meningoencephalitis.

Loiasis

Parasites living under the human skin, with loiasis, contribute to the appearance of the following clinical picture of the disease:

• rash on the skin;
• fever;
• parasites in human muscles can provoke muscle abscesses;
• pain in the limbs;
• swelling of the skin in restricted areas that do not go away for a long time;
• if parasites enter the eyes, blepharitis or conjunctivitis develops;
• urination disorder with localization of infection in the urethra.

Important! These subcutaneous parasites in humans can lead to complications in the form of meningitis, heart failure, encephalitis.

Mansonellosis

With this type of disease, worms under the human skin can cause the following complex of symptoms:

• itchy rash;
• joint pain;
• fever;
• swelling of the skin;
• quilting in the testicle;
• numbness in the limbs;
• an increase in the groin lymph nodes.

Symptoms of cysticercosis

These parasites on human skin can easily enter the digestive tract with food, where the embryonic membrane dissolves and the larva emerges. They enter the bloodstream and are transported throughout the body. After settling in certain organs, the larvae turn into cysticercus and cause the following symptoms:

• under the skin occur several or single, tumor-like, painless, oval formations (usually they are located on the inside of the shoulders, at the top of the chest and on the palms);
• in the seals you can feel the cavity;
• over time these seals grow;
• new formations emerge;
• when performing a histology of training, a cysticercus may be found inside;
• hives;
• rarely, the nodules attach, but more often they do not change for many years and occasionally resolve themselves.

Symptoms of schistosomiasis

Schistosomal larvae can penetrate human skin directly from the aquatic environment. Within a few hours, they can be in the bloodstream. During skin invasion, the following symptoms appear:

• hives;
• severe itching;
• spotted rash appears every other day.

Then a period of calm ensues for several weeks. In the circulatory system, schistosomes reach the stage of sexually mature individuals and migrate into the vasculature of the genitourinary system. After a few months, the patient develops the following symptoms:

• dry cough;
• fever;
• hives;
• heavy sweating at night;
• enlargement of the liver;
• vaginal bleeding;
• blood in the urine;
• pathology of prostate, kidney and bladder;
• nodes on the genitals;
• infertility.

Important! In childhood, schistosomiasis contributes to a decrease in learning ability, anemia, developmental delay and memory impairment.

Dracunculiasis symptoms

If a person drinks water containing infected copepods, helminth larvae are released after their death into the patient's digestive system. They penetrate the retroperitoneal space and migrate through the lymphatic system into soft tissue. Only after 3 months can the female of this parasite invade the skin or connective tissue for further development. As the woman grows, the patient develops the characteristic symptoms of the disease:

• an allergic reaction to infection appears only after 10-14 months in the form of hives, fainting, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting and suffocation;
• a year later a rhtosis bladder appears on the skin (its diameter reaches 2-7 cm, but there is no sign of inflammation);
• you can see a helminth in the bladder;
• after a few days the bubble itself opens and the necrotic masses are rejected;
• at autopsy the patient feels a burning sensation and sharp pains.

Worth knowing! Usually, rishtose blisters are located on the skin of the legs, but sometimes they can be on the abdomen, arms and other parts of the body. The female can also settle in the connective tissue of the joints. In this case, his immobility, contracture and inflammation appear in the pouch.

In a secondary infection there may be phlegmon, abscess, sepsis and gangrene. If a patient with open bladder falls into a reservoir, thousands of larvae will again be swallowed by cyclops crustaceans, which will cause further spread of the infection.