Ascariasis is infection with Ascaris lumbricoides. Light infections may be asymptomatic. Early symptoms are pulmonary (cough, wheezing); later symptoms are GI, with cramps or abdominal pain due to obstruction of GI lumina (intestines or biliary or pancreatic ducts) by adult worms. Chronically infected children may develop undernutrition. Diagnosis is by identifying eggs or adult worms in stool, adult worms that migrate from the nose or mouth, or larvae in sputum during the pulmonary migration phase. Treatment is with albendazole, mebendazole, or pyrantel pamoate.

Pathophysiology

Ingested eggs hatch in the duodenum, and the resulting larvae penetrate the wall of the small bowel and migrate via the portal circulation through the liver to the heart and lungs. Larvae lodge in the alveolar capillaries, penetrate alveolar walls, and ascend the bronchial tree into the oropharynx. They are swallowed and return to the small bowel, where they develop into adult worms, which mate and release eggs into the stool. The life cycle is completed in about 2 to 3 mo; adult worms live 1 to 2 yr.

Ascaris life cycle.

A tangled mass of worms resulting from heavy infection can obstruct the bowel, particularly in children. Aberrantly migrating individual adult worms occasionally obstruct the biliary or pancreatic ducts, causing cholecystitis or pancreatitis; cholangitis, liver abscess, and peritonitis are less common. Fever due to other illnesses or certain drugs (eg, albendazoleSome Trade Names
ALBENZA
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, mebendazoleSome Trade Names
VERMOX
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, tetrachloroethylene) may trigger aberrant migration.

Etiology

Ascariasis occurs worldwide. It is concentrated in tropical and subtropical areas with poor sanitation, but transmission also occurs in rural areas of the southeastern US. Ascariasis is the most prevalent intestinal helminth infection in the world. Current estimates suggest that > 1.3 billion people are infected, and about 20,000 infected people (mostly children) die each year of bowel or biliary obstruction. An estimated 4 million people in the US are infected.

Symptoms and Signs

Larvae migrating through the lungs may cause cough, wheezing, and occasionally hemoptysis or other respiratory symptoms. Adult worms in small numbers usually do not cause GI symptoms, although passage of an adult worm by mouth or rectum may bring an otherwise asymptomatic patient to medical attention. Bowel or biliary obstruction causes cramping abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting. Jaundice is uncommon. Even moderate infections can lead to undernutrition in children. The pathophysiology is unclear and may include competition for nutrients, impairment of absorption, and depression of appetite.

Diagnosis

• Microscopic examination of stool

Diagnosis is by microscopic detection of eggs in stools. Occasionally, larvae can be found in sputum during the pulmonary phase.

Eosinophilia can be marked while larvae migrate though the lungs but usually subsides later when adult worms reside in the intestine. Chest x-ray during the pulmonary phase may show infiltrates (Löffler's syndrome).

Treatment

• AlbendazoleSome Trade Names
  ALBENZA
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All infections should be treated. AlbendazoleSome Trade Names
ALBENZA
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400 mg po once, mebendazoleSome Trade Names
VERMOX
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100 mg po bid for 3 days, or ivermectinSome Trade Names
STROMECTOL
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150 to 200 μg/kg once is effective. AlbendazoleSome Trade Names
ALBENZA
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, mebendazoleSome Trade Names
VERMOX
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, and ivermectinSome Trade Names
STROMECTOL
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should not be used during pregnancy. NitazoxanideSome Trade Names
ALINIA
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is effective for mild Ascaris infections but less so for heavy infections. PiperazineSome Trade Names
No US trade name

, once widely used, has been replaced by less toxic alternatives.

Obstructive complications may respond to anthelmintic therapy or require surgical or endoscopic extraction of adult worms.

Prevention

Prevention requires adequate sanitation. Uncooked or unwashed vegetables should be avoided in areas where human feces are used as fertilizer.

Last full review/revision December 2009 by Richard D. Pearson, MD

Content last modified February 2012