Trichuriasis

Twenty patients with massive trichuriasis were studied with double contrast barium enema. The following changes were observed: 1) Impregnation defects of the colonic wall probably due to abundant mucous secretions. 2) Granular features. 3) Pear-shaped caecum. 4) Radiolucid ringlike images with some contrast material in its center, similar to those seen in lymphoid hyperplasia. On closer observation it was seen that the radiolucid ring was not complete and was continued by a prolongation which corresponds to the whipworm. This feature is central to the differential diagnosis.     

Pediatric geohelminth infections: Trichuriasis,ascariasis, and hookworm infections

The major soil-transmitted intestinal nematodes of humans, Trichuris, Ascaris, and the two major hookworms, Ancylostoma and Necator, often are referred to collectively as geohelminths. Geohelminth infections are a particular public health threat to children in whom high intensity infections frequently occur. For Ascaris and Trichuris, the heaviest and most severe infections occur in children of school-age. As a result, these children suffer unique geohelminth-associated deficits in physical and intellectual growth. In a few cases, the parasite-derived macromolecules partly associated with these processes have been identified and chemically characterized. Copyright © 2000 by W.B. Saunders Company