   #copyright

Whipworm

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Health and medicine;
Organisms

                   iWhipworm
   Male Whipworm
   Male Whipworm
           Scientific classification

   Kingdom: Animalia
   Phylum:  Nematoda
   Class:   Adenophorea
   Order:   Trichurida
   Family:  Trichuridae
   Genus:   Trichuris
   Species: T. trichiura

                                Binomial name

   Trichuris trichiura
   (Linnaeus, 1771)

   The human Whipworm (Trichuris trichiura or Trichocephalus trichiuris),
   is a roundworm, which causes trichuriasis when it infects a human large
   intestine. The name whipworm refers to the shape of the worm; they look
   like whips with wider "handles" at the posterior end. Symptoms include:
     * Light infestations are frequently asymptomatic.
     * Heavy infestations may have bloody diarrhea.
     * Long-standing blood loss may lead to iron-deficiency anaemia.
     * Rectal prolapse is possible in severe cases.

   Infection occurs through accidental ingestion of eggs and is more
   common in warmer areas. The eggs hatch in the small intestine, and then
   move into the wall of the small intestine and develop. On reaching
   adulthood, the thinner end (the front of the worm) burrows into the
   large intestine and the thicker end hangs into the lumen and mates with
   nearby worms. The females can grow to 50 mm = 2 inches long. Neither
   the male nor the female has much of a visible tail past the anus.

   Whipworm infestation is detectable by stool examination, which can
   detect eggs and charcot-leyden crystals. Mebendazole is 90% effective
   in the first dose, and alendazole may also be offered as an
   anti-parasitic agent. Adding iron to the bloodstream helps solve the
   iron deficiency and rectal prolapse.

   Whipworm commonly infects patients also infected with Giardia,
   Entamoeba histolitica, Ascaris lumbricoides, and hookworms.

   Infection can be avoided by proper disposal of human feces, and not
   eating dirt, and not eating crops fertilized with night soil.

Dog and cat whipworms

   Egg of Trichuris vulpis
   Enlarge
   Egg of Trichuris vulpis

   Whipworms develop when a dog swallows whipworm eggs, passed from an
   infected dog. Symptoms may include diarrhea, anaemia, and dehydration.
   The dog whipworm (Trichuris vulpis) is commonly found in the U.S. It is
   hard to detect at times, because the numbers of eggs shed are low, and
   they are shed in waves. Centrifugation is the preferred method. There
   are several preventives available by prescription from a veterinarian
   to prevent dogs from getting whipworm.

   The cat whipworm (Trichuris campanula) is NOT found in the US, and
   whipworm eggs found in cats in the US must be differentiated from
   lungworms, and from mouse whipworm eggs just passing through.

Pig whipworms (Trichuris suis) in treating other disorders

   It has been suggested that a contributing cause of intestinal disorders
   is immune system reaction to the patient's own body, and that adding
   worms for the immune system to attack instead may alleviate the
   symptoms. In a preliminary study, "among 100 volunteers with Crohn's
   disease and 100 with ulcerative colitis, both of which are diseases
   classified under IBD [inflammatory bowel disease], the remission rate
   was 70% and 50%, respectively" after ingesting eggs of the pig whipworm
   Trichiuris suis . See Helminthic therapy.

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whipworm"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
