Pros: It happens that the analysis does not reveal the "uninvited guests" the first time. Quoting the famous mustachioed doctor: “Sometimes 9 tests are negative, and the 10th is positive. So, ten times to go to the clinic? Go to the hospital for daily laboratory-controlled pooping? " Infection with enterobiasis (pinworms), the usual analysis of feces for helminths will not show. These parasites are detected by a special scraping with a spatula from the anus zone, and it must be done early in the morning. The analysis is not always convenient to collect, for example, from a baby. When collecting feces from the diaper, you need to make sure that no urine gets on it. There is always a risk of catching parasites. City sandpit, poorly washed vegetables and fruits, dirty hands, contaminated meat and dairy products, water, someone else's toy, a neighbor's dog, sand, where an infected cat or dog passed and which a child pulled into his mouth - it is literally impossible to foresee everything. The child has other signs of a worm infection. In the acute stage, these are allergic reactions (their cause is antibodies that the body produces in response to intruders), weight loss for no apparent reason, itching in the anus, poor appetite, lethargy, drowsiness, diarrhea, abdominal discomfort. If you do not notice the worms in time and do not start treatment, unpleasant consequences are possible: starting with anemia, a lack of protein in the body, slowing growth and development and ending with severe diseases of internal organs and death. The chronic stage of infection with helminths can occur within a few weeks after the onset of "acute" symptoms. WHO recommends the annual prophylactic intake of anthelmintic drugs for residents of regions where you can get infected through the soil. These are the United States, China, East Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa. If you live in endemic countries or have a rest there with a child, the likelihood of infection is greater. Within a month after starting treatment, it is important not to get infected again. To do this, clean your home, trim your nails as short as possible, and regularly wash and iron bed and underwear. The baby can be given freshly squeezed carrot juice daily. But pumpkin seeds as an anthelmintic agent are ineffective: they must be eaten in very large quantities in order to "drive away" the worms. Against To check if there are worms or not, a simple analysis of feces for helminth eggs is enough. The average cost in paid laboratories in Moscow is 400 rubles. It is best to treat the found parasite with a specific drug rather than a broad spectrum drug. For example, having found pinworms, enterobiasis is treated, roundworms - ascariasis. For this, special medicines are used. Preventive treatment does not always work. If Toxocara eggs have entered the body, a prophylactic dose of anthelmintic drugs will only make it worse. And enterobiasis can reappear if the source of infection remains (for example, parasite eggs under the nails). Anthelmintic drugs (such as mebendazole) are toxic and burden the liver with unnecessary work. Some antihelminthic agents affect the psyche, sleep may be disturbed. WHO does not classify Russia, Ukraine and Belarus as countries where prophylactic use of anthelmintic drugs is recommended. Expert opinion: Worming a child over 1.5 years old must be done twice a year. Even if there are no pets, there is a sandbox. I usually prescribe vermox, decaris, pyrantel. Patimat Omarovna Makhacheva, pediatrician
