Dracunculiasis, also known as Guinea worm disease (GWD), is an
infection caused by the parasite Dracunculus medinensis
. A parasite is an organism that feeds off another organism to survive. GWD is spread by drinking water containing Guinea worm larvae. Larvae are immature forms of the worm.
How can you prevent Guinea worm disease?
Prevention. No vaccine exists against Guinea worm, but the disease can be completely prevented by
ensuring safe drinking water
and not allowing the adult worms to disperse their larvae. The best way to prevent infection is to drink water only from uncontaminated water sources, like hand-dug wells and boreholes.
Where is dracunculiasis found?
Today, dracunculiasis, more commonly known as Guinea Worm Disease, is only found in
13 countries in sub-Saharan Africa
. It is caused by a nematode, or flatworm, Dracunculus medinensis, which infects small Crustaceans, called Cyclops which dwell in water supplies.
How does Dracunculus medinensis cause disease?
The roundworm, Dracunculus medinensis, causes dracunculiasis or Guinea worm disease.
Humans become infected by drinking unfiltered water containing small crustaceans that are infected with larvae
of Dracunculus medinensis. The worm emerges from the skin in the middle of an ulcer as a white-looking filament.
What is the causative agent of dracunculiasis?
Causal Agent:
Dracunculiasis (guinea worm disease) is caused by the
nematode (roundworm) Dracunculus medinensis
.
How is dracunculiasis diagnosed?
Dracunculiasis is infection with Dracunculus medinensis. Symptoms are a painful, inflamed skin lesion, which contains an adult worm, and debilitating arthritis. Diagnosis is
by inspection
. Treatment is slow removal of the adult worm.
What is the mode of transmission of dracunculiasis?
Dracunculiasis is transmitted by
drinking unsafe† stagnant water contaminated by copepods (water fleas) that contain Dracunculus medinensis larvae
. The copepods are digested in the human gastrointestinal tract and release the larvae, which penetrate the gut wall.
Which disease caused due to worm?
Infections caused by roundworms are fairly common.
Ascariasis is the most common roundworm infection
. About 10 percent of the developing world is infected with intestinal worms, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Which disease is caused by worms?
Common global water-related diseases caused by parasites include Guinea worm,
schistosomiasis, amebiasis, cryptosporidiosis (Crypto)
, and giardiasis. People become infected with these diseases when they swallow or have contact with water that has been contaminated by certain parasites.
How do you prevent water from getting worms?
- Surveillance (case detection) and case containment (preventing contamination of drinking water sources by infected persons or animals)
- Provision of safe drinking water.
- Vector control (killing of the copepods involved in the Guinea worm life cycle) using the approved chemical temephos.
What is the incubation period of dracunculiasis?
As the incubation period of the worm takes
10–14 months
, a single missed case will delay eradication by a year or more.
What diseases can you get from snails?
Snail-borne parasitic diseases, such as
angiostrongyliasis, clonorchiasis, fascioliasis, fasciolopsiasis, opisthorchiasis, paragonimiasis and schistosomiasis
, pose risks to human health and cause major socioeconomic problems in many tropical and sub-tropical countries.
How long can a human have worms?
Adult worms can live up to 7 years in a person’s lymph system
. The disease only spreads from person to person through mosquitoes. When a mosquito bites an infected person, they can spread the tiny worms to other people they bite.
Who is most at risk for infection by GWD?
GWD occurs in all age groups but it is most common among
young adults 15–45 years old
. This may be because of the type of work done by people this age.
Which is a helminth disease?
Helminths are
parasitic worms
. They are the most common infectious agents of humans in developing countries and produce a global burden of disease that exceeds better-known conditions, including malaria and tuberculosis.
Which disease is caused by a nematode?
Nematode infections in humans include
ascariasis
, trichuriasis, hookworm, enterobiasis, strongyloidiasis, filariasis, trichinosis, dirofilariasis, and angiostrongyliasis (rat lungworm disease), among others.
