When identifying symptoms and suspecting the presence of worms in the body, the first question that arises is: which doctor should I contact?
Self-treatment is prohibited; before starting any therapy, it is necessary to make an accurate diagnosis and identify the type of helminthiasis. Only a doctor specializing in these diseases can prescribe medications and prescribe a course of treatment.
What to do in such a situation? To get started, we recommend reading this article. This article describes in detail methods of controlling parasites. We also recommend that you consult a specialist. Read the article >>>
What does a parasitologist treat?
The work of a doctor is based on the science of parasitology. This knowledge system allows you to study a disease caused by parasitic organisms based on the clinical picture and determine the necessary preventive measures.
The main task of a doctor is to promptly find parasites in humans that cause serious diseases.
What diseases does a parasitologist deal with?
- A parasitologist, in the range of his knowledge, has information about diseases such as various toxoplasma, which cause numerous deformities, as well as congenital diseases in children. These toxoplasma may also be responsible for the fact that the child is lagging behind in mental development;
- A parasitologist also deals with fungi that can cause the development of unpleasant diseases. Including oncology;
- Giardia, which contributes to liver damage, is also included in the range of problems dealt with by a parasitologist;
- Roundworms, which can cause intestinal complications, as well as pinworms, which cause gastrointestinal diseases;
In addition, the parasitologist also treats a number of other diseases:
- Fascioliasis. Because of it, biliary tract allergies are formed, and chronic hepatitis also occurs;
- Asciolopsidosis - because of it, ancalology develops.
This is not a complete list of areas of work for a parasitologist.
Which doctor treats parasites?
Noticing the presence of foreign organisms, the patient begins to look for help on the Internet using queries like “what is the name of a doctor on human parasites.” Let’s answer the question right away: a specialist in the treatment of infections associated with the presence of pathogenic parasitic organisms in the body is called an “infectious disease parasitologist.”
However, in some cases, you can do without the help of the named specialist, or vice versa - his efforts are not enough and to treat the invasion you need to resort to the services of several professionals of different specializations.
Therapist
Therapist
Treatment of diseases caused by parasitic organisms should begin with a visit to the local physician. At the appointment, the patient’s complaints will be recorded and an initial examination will be performed. The main thing that the specialist will do is provide directions for tests.
At the first stage, the patient will have to pass:
- Fecal analysis for worm eggs;
- Urinalysis (with helminthic infestation, traces of volatile fatty acids produced by parasites remain in the urine);
- Blood analysis.
A blood test in the presence of parasites will show the presence of eosinophilia and a low concentration of red blood cells in the blood (typical of protozoal infections). The laboratory results will determine which doctor treats the parasites in this case.
Gastroenterologist
Gastroenterologist
Most cases of parasitic infestations are associated with gastrointestinal lesions. Therefore, a person infected with flat or roundworms is referred to a gastroenterologist. The doctor determines the type of helminth that has “occupied” the body. Most often, these are pinworms. In this case, the person is prescribed an anthelmintic complex followed by an enema to remove dead parasites from the intestines.
If ascariasis is suspected, the doctor will prescribe an additional X-ray examination of the lungs. Roundworms regularly migrate through the respiratory system, leaving inflammatory lesions along the way. If any are detected, and a blood test shows eosinophilia, then the person is most likely the “host” of roundworm. An anthelmintic pharmacological complex is prescribed for treatment.
The most difficult thing to determine is infection with flatworms, which rarely reveal their presence in the body. Eosinophilia is diagnosed, but this is of little help in finding the cause. A sign of flukes in the body is anemia, as well as the passage of worm segments in the feces. Therefore, everything depends not only on objective data, but also on the patient’s honesty.
IMPORTANT! Regardless of which doctor treats parasites, be extremely honest with him, talk about all the manifestations of the disease without concealing details - this will simplify diagnosis and, possibly, save a life. An infected person not only suffers himself, but also poses a danger to his social circle. Think about it: a multi-meter bovine tapeworm consists of hundreds of identical segments. Each segment contains over 100,000 eggs! In addition, when separated from the body, each segment is capable of growing into an independent worm.
If a flatworm infection is detected, then in this case the help of a specialist in a different direction will be required.
Surgeon
Of course, you can’t kill a multi-meter worm with deworming tablets. Under the influence of pharmacology, the worm can begin to migrate and cause more harm. Therefore, there is only one way out - to cut out the parasite through surgery. The patient's intestines are opened and the giant helminth is forcibly removed.
Surgeons often work with the consequences of invasions: they have to perform operations on affected organs or cut out malignant formations that have arisen due to the activity of a harmful organism.
Infectious disease parasitologist
Infectious disease parasitologist
The doctor specializes in treating infections caused by protozoan pathogens. Can also deal with worms if we are talking about a specialized helminthologist. Diagnosis by parasitologists is based on basic laboratory tests. Also in the course of research, radiographs, tomography, scrapings, punctures, and fluorescent reactions are used.
An infectious disease parasitologist is able to provide assistance with any type of invasion, including intestinal ones. The problem is that doctors of the described specialization are practically not involved in municipal medical institutions. Therefore, their functionality is performed locally by other specialists.
Who is an infectious disease specialist and how can he help with worms?
An infectious disease specialist is directly related to such a field of medicine as infectology. It, in turn, consists of the study of infectious diseases, which include respiratory tract infections and intestinal infections, infections of the outer skin, blood infections (vector-borne infections and non-transmissible infections), etc.
Taking into account the specific features of each of the areas listed, we note that an infectious disease specialist treats infectious diseases, respectively, diagnosing them, prescribing appropriate treatment and determining specific preventive measures to subsequently prevent them.
In particular, an infectious disease specialist studies in detail the specifics of the occurrence of infectious diseases, the mechanisms of their development, as well as the clinical manifestations inherent in them.
The diseases themselves, which an infectious disease specialist deals with, arise, as you might guess, due to pathogens and parasites that enter the body.
The work of infectious disease specialists is closely related to data from microbiology and epidemiology.
Who to contact first
Infection with parasites, contrary to popular belief, threatens not only children. Almost anyone who comes into contact with soil or consumes poor-quality drinking water or food can become infected with protozoa or worms. Transmission can also occur through contact, from an infected person or animal.
Parasite specialists
Penetrating deep into the human body, the parasite larvae take hold and begin their development, simultaneously releasing toxins that are hazardous to health, while absorbing vitamins and nutrients.
In addition to the gastrointestinal tract, helminths often parasitize other organs:
- before our eyes;
- in the nasal cavity;
- in the liver;
- in the gall and (or) bladder.
Depending on which organs the lesion is located in, a person will have to consult one or another doctor. However, first of all, you should go to a general practitioner - a local therapist or pediatrician.
Therapist
A pediatrician is a doctor who specializes in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of childhood diseases, including those associated with the presence of parasites in the body. Due to the characteristics of the immune system, children are especially sensitive to this type of disease (according to statistics, approximately 80% of all cases are preschoolers).
Adults, if signs of helminth damage occur, should consult a physician. After an oral interview with the patient, the doctor will prescribe tests for the presence of parasites.
Typically, such studies include:
- general blood analysis;
- coprogram (this is the name of a general stool analysis);
- test for worm eggs.
If the presence of parasites in the human body is confirmed, the general practitioner prescribes treatment or gives a referral to a specialist.
Gastroenterol for worms
Many parasites and worms can cause diseases associated with the gastrointestinal tract. Therefore, in such cases, you can seek help from gastroenterol.
A gastroenterologist is a specialist trained in the field of diagnosis, treatment and preventive methods for all those diseases that are relevant to the gastrointestinal tract.
Primary diagnosis of this type of disease is carried out, as a rule, by pediatricians and therapists. Mostly, gastrointestinal problems can be identified when a patient visits a clinic due to complaints of certain digestive disorders or pain in the abdominal area.
If the hospital has a gastroenterologist, you can make an appointment with him in addition to the therapist. This doctor deals with problems of the gastrointestinal tract and liver. He will also advise you to take tests to determine the disease. You can do this yourself before visiting a doctor.
Initial tests for symptoms of helminthiasis are feces for worms, scraping and a complete blood count. With the results ready, you can come to an appointment with a therapist or gastroenterologist. To obtain an accurate result, tests should be taken twice with an interval of 1-2 days. Worms may not appear immediately. There are laboratories where you can be examined anonymously.
If the result is positive, the therapist will refer the patient to a specialist doctor. This is an infectious disease specialist or parasitologist.
Doctor treating parasites
Several doctors treat parasites at once, but only one specializes. Most often, treatment is carried out by an infectious disease parasitologist. But in most public clinics there is no such doctor.
After passing all the tests, the therapist refers the patient to a parasitologist or gastroenterologist.
In district clinics, where the level of infection of patients is much higher than in city hospitals, treatment is carried out by a doctor called a gastroenterologist. This doctor prescribes standard medications to get rid of worms. But due to the fact that this doctor treats the gastrointestinal tract, it is better to look for a parasitologist. A highly specialized specialist will prescribe individual treatment, which will be much more effective.
For those who are faced with the discovery and need to treat worms for the first time, it is important to contact a competent specialist. After all, the duration and effectiveness of treatment depends on how quickly medical care is provided.
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Read further:
How are worms and psychosomatics connected in humans? Can parasites appear in this way?
Infectious disease specialist or parasitologist: in what cases is it better to contact whom?
Prevention of worms in adults: drugs to prevent the development of helminthiases
Myiases (nasal, cutaneous, oral, intestinal and tissue): symptoms and treatment
Pathogenic bacteria in humans: what diseases cause them, how to treat them
How much do deworming tablets cost for people with a wide and narrow spectrum of action?
Who else can you contact if you suspect helminthiasis?
It is necessary to understand that the choice of the attending physician also depends on the type of worms identified. For the most part, helminth infections are dealt with not by one specialist, but by a number of doctors. Therefore, it is impossible to unambiguously answer the question: “what kind of doctor deals with parasites?” In some cases, it is not enough to limit yourself to just a parasitologist, so you can also get a referral from a therapist to an infectious disease specialist; if the intestinal system has been affected, to a gastroenterologist. The latter doctor occupies a special place in the treatment of helminthic infestations, because worms are predominantly localized in the gastrointestinal tract.
Bibliography
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Brucellosis. Parasites. Link
- Corbel MJ Parasitic diseases // World Health Organization. Link
- Young EJ Best matches for intestinal parasites // Clinical Infectious Diseases. — 1995. Vol. 21. - P. 283-290. Link
- Yushchuk N.D., Vengerov Yu.A. Infectious diseases: textbook. — 2nd edition. - M.: Medicine, 2003. - 544 p.
- Prevalence of parasitic diseases among the population, 2009 / Kokolova L. M., Reshetnikov A. D., Platonov T. A., Verkhovtseva L. A.
- Helminths of domestic carnivores of the Voronezh region, 2011 / Nikulin P. I., Romashov B. V.
An article for patients with a doctor-diagnosed disease. Does not replace a doctor's appointment and cannot be used for self-diagnosis.
The best stories from our readers
Topic: Parasites are to blame for all troubles!
From: Lyudmila S. ()
To: Administration Noparasites.ru
Not long ago my health condition worsened. I began to feel constant fatigue, headaches, laziness and some kind of endless apathy appeared. Problems also appeared with the gastrointestinal tract: bloating, diarrhea, pain and bad breath.
I thought it was because of the hard work and hoped that it would go away on its own. But every day I felt worse. The doctors couldn’t really say anything either. Everything seems to be normal, but I feel like my body is not healthy.
I decided to go to a private clinic. Here I was advised, in addition to general tests, to get tested for parasites. So in one of the tests they found parasites in me. According to doctors, these were worms, which 90% of people have and almost everyone is infected, to a greater or lesser extent.
I was prescribed a course of antiparasitic medications. But it didn’t give me any results. A week later, a friend sent me a link to an article where some parasitologist shared real tips on fighting parasites. This article literally saved my life. I followed all the advice that was there and after a couple of days I felt much better!
Digestion improved, headaches went away and the vital energy that I so lacked appeared. To be sure, I took the tests again and no parasites were found!
Anyone who wants to cleanse their body of parasites, no matter what types of these creatures live in you, read this article, I’m 100% sure it will help you! Go to article>>>
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This service is a small help in finding cures for parasites. To start using it, select the type of parasite. If you don’t know what kind of parasite you are infected with, this parasite identification tool will help you by symptoms.
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What symptoms should you consult a specialist for?
Helminth infections have a very specific clinical picture, which will tell an infected person when he needs to see a specialist for diagnosis and treatment. Among the signs indicating that worms are parasitic in the human body are the following:
- flatulence;
- frequent bowel movements;
- various types of allergic reactions on the skin (rash, redness, itching);
- decreased endurance;
- muscle pain;
- decreased or lack of appetite;
- pain in the right hypochondrium;
- Children experience another specific symptom – itching in the anal area, which intensifies at night.
There are other symptoms that, at first approach, do not seem entirely logical and understandable. These could include pain in the eyes. But in fact, worms are capable of infecting a wide variety of human organs due to the fact that they can be localized not only in the digestive and excretory systems.
If you experience one or more of the above symptoms, it is highly recommended that you seek professional help. It is unlikely that you will be able to identify helminthiasis on your own, because there are about three hundred varieties of parasites that infect the human body. Moreover, they are able to develop and reproduce quite rapidly in an environment favorable to them. Therefore, a delay in going to the doctor and examination may add difficulties in further solving the problem.
