Capillariasis is a disease in the group of

helminthiasis Helminthiasis, also known as worm infection, is any macroparasitic disease of humans and other animals in which a part of the body is infected with parasitic worms, known as helminths. There are numerous species of these parasites, which are br ...

diseases caused by the

nematode The nematodes ( or grc-gre, Νηματώδη; la, Nematoda) or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda (also called Nemathelminthes), with plant-Parasitism, parasitic nematodes also known as eelworms. They are a diverse animal phylum inhab ...

Capillaria philippinensis ''Capillaria philippinensis'' is a parasitic nematode which causes intestinal capillariasis. This sometimes fatal disease was first discovered in Northern Luzon, Philippines, in 1964. Cases have also been reported from China, Egypt, Indonesia ...

''.

Symptoms and signs

Symptoms in infested humans include watery

diarrhea Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements each day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. Signs of dehydration often begin wi ...

, abdominal pain,

edema Edema, also spelled oedema, and also known as fluid retention, dropsy, hydropsy and swelling, is the build-up of fluid in the body's Tissue (biology), tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may include skin which feels t ...

, weight loss,

borborygmus A stomach rumble, also known as a bowel sound, peristaltic sound, abdominal sound, bubble gut or borborygmus (pronounced ; plural borborygmi), is a rumbling, growling or gurgling noise produced by movement of the contents of the gastro-intestinal ...

(stomach growling), and depressed levels of

potassium Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (from Neo-Latin ''kalium'') and atomic number19. Potassium is a silvery-white metal that is soft enough to be cut with a knife with little force. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmosphe ...

and

albumin Albumin is a family of globular proteins, the most common of which are the serum albumins. All the proteins of the albumin family are water-soluble, moderately soluble in concentrated salt solutions, and experience heat denaturation. Albumins ...

in the blood. In humans, the parasites damage the cells of the intestinal wall. This damage interferes with the absorption of nutrients and the maintenance of a proper

electrolyte An electrolyte is a medium containing ions that is electrically conducting through the movement of those ions, but not conducting electrons. This includes most soluble salts, acids, and bases dissolved in a polar solvent, such as water. Upon dis ...

balance. Untreated ''C. philippinensis'' infestations are often fatal.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis usually involves finding the eggs and/or adults of ''C. philippinensis'' in stool samples.

Prevention

Prevention is as simple as avoiding eating small, whole, uncooked fish. However, in ''C. philippinensis''

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

areas, such dietary habits are common and have been practiced for many generations.

Treatment

Anthelmintics Anthelmintics or antihelminthics are a group of antiparasitic drugs that expel parasitic worms (helminths) and other internal parasites from the body by either stunning or killing them and without causing significant damage to the host. They may a ...

such as

mebendazole Mebendazole (MBZ), sold under the brand name Vermox among others, is a medication used to treat a number of parasitic worm infestations. This includes ascariasis, pinworm infection, hookworm infections, guinea worm infections, hydatid disease, ...

and

albendazole Albendazole (also known as albendazolum) is a broad-spectrum anthelmintic and antiprotozoal agent of the benzimidazole type. It is used for the treatment of a variety of intestinal parasite infections, including ascariasis, pinworm infection, h ...

have been reported to eliminate infestation of humans more effectively than

thiabendazole Tiabendazole (INN, BAN), also known as thiabendazole (AAN, USAN) or TBZ and the trade names Mintezol, Tresaderm, and Arbotect, is a preservative, an antifungal agent, and an antiparasitic agent. Uses Preservative Tiabendazole is used primar ...

.Hwang, K.P., T.E. Wang, T.C. Liou, S.C. Lin, C.R. Kao, T.Y. Wang and K.K. Pang (2004)
Clinical features of human intestinal capillariasis in Taiwan
" ''World Journal of Gastroenterology'' 10(16):2391-2393.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Intestinal Capillariasis Trichocephalida Helminthiases Conditions diagnosed by stool test