Schistosomiasis
Schistosomiasis, also known as snail fever and bilharzia,[1] is a disease caused by parasitic flatworms called schistosomes.[2] The urinary tract or the intestines may be infected.[2] Symptoms include abdominal pain, diarrhea, bloody stool, or blood in the urine.[2] Those who have been infected for a long time may experience liver damage, kidney failure, infertility, or bladder cancer.[2] In children, it may cause poor growth and learning difficulty.[2]
The disease is caused by contact with fresh water containing the parasites.[2] These parasites are from infected freshwater snails.[2] The disease is very common among children in developing countries, as they are more likely to play in water.[2] Other high-risk groups include farmers, fishermen, and people using unclean water.[2] It is a helminth infections.[3] Eggs of the parasite may be found in urine or stool.[2] Antibodies may also be found in the blood.[2]
To prevent the disease use clean water and reduce snails.[2] The medicine praziquantel may be given once a year to everybody.[2] This will decrease the number of people infected.[2] Praziquantel is also the treatment recommended by the World Health Organization for those who are known to be infected.[2]
Schistosomiasis affected about 252 million people in 2015.[4] An estimated 4,400 to 200,000 people die from it each year.[5][6] The disease is mainly found in Africa, Asia, and South America.[2] About 700 million people, in more than 70 countries, live where the disease is common.[5][7] In tropical countries, schistosomiasis causes a great economic problem.[8] Schistosomiasis is listed as a neglected tropical disease.[9]
Schistosomiasis Media
Life cycle of Schistosoma spp.
Lifecycle stages of a typical trematode, Schistosoma japonicum.
High-powered detailed micrograph of Schistosoma parasite eggs in human bladder tissue
S. japonicum eggs in hepatic portal tract
Ethiopian children treated for Schistosoma mansoni
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References
- ↑ Colley DG, Bustinduy AL, Secor WE, King CH (June 2014). "Human schistosomiasis". Lancet. 383 (9936): 2253–64. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(13)61949-2. PMC 4672382. PMID 24698483.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 "Schistosomiasis Fact sheet N°115". World Health Organization. 3 February 2014. Archived from the original on 12 March 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
- ↑ "Chapter 3 Infectious Diseases Related To Travel". cdc.gov. 1 August 2013. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
- ↑ Vos T, Allen C, Arora M, Barber RM, Bhutta ZA, Brown A, et al. (GBD 2015 Mortality and Causes of Death Collaborators) (October 2016). "Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 310 diseases and injuries, 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015". Lancet. 388 (10053): 1545–1602. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31678-6. PMC 5055577. PMID 27733282.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Thétiot-Laurent SA, Boissier J, Robert A, Meunier B (July 2013). "Schistosomiasis chemotherapy". Angewandte Chemie. 52 (31): 7936–56. doi:10.1002/anie.201208390. PMID 23813602.
- ↑ Vos T, Allen C, Arora M, Barber RM, Bhutta ZA, Brown A, et al. (GBD 2015 Mortality and Causes of Death Collaborators) (October 2016). "Global, regional, and national life expectancy, all-cause mortality, and cause-specific mortality for 249 causes of death, 1980-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015". Lancet. 388 (10053): 1459–1544. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(16)31012-1. PMC 5388903. PMID 27733281.
- ↑ "Schistosomiasis A major public health problem". World Health Organization. Archived from the original on 5 April 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
- ↑ The Carter Center. "Schistosomiasis Control Program". Archived from the original on 20 July 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2008.
- ↑ "Neglected Tropical Diseases". cdc.gov. 6 June 2011. Archived from the original on 4 December 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2014.