Treating a Tapeworm Infection

If you have a tapeworm infection you have probably ingested food that contained tapeworm eggs or larvae. These eggs can live outside your intestines and form ysts in your body’s tissues and organs. If the eggs continue to grow into adults you may have a problem. Adults can survive up to 20 years on a human’s intestines.

There are a few ways to get tapeworm. You can become infected after you eat food that has been contaminated with feces from a animal or person who already has a tapeworm infection. You can also get tapeworm by eating raw meat from an animal that already has a tapeworm infection.

Symptoms of a tapeworm infection can be mild to severe. You may have a loss of appetite, feel nauseous and have diarrhea. However, you may also have a seizure, bacterial infection or a high spiked fever. It is important to know if you have a tapeworm infection and get it looked at right away.

There are many ways to prevent tapeworm. It is important to wash your hands after you have used the restroom and before preparing and eating food. It is also important to thoroughly cook meat that you are eating to eliminate the chance of the tapeworm surviving. You can freeze meat after you purchase it to kill any tapeworm eggs that may be living on the meat.

After going to the clinic to be treated, there is a few things that your doctor can do. He may prescribe you with an anti-inflammatory medication to reduce any swelling that the cysts may be doing inside your body. He may also give you another medication to shrink the size of the tapeworm. By doing this, it is possible that the tapeworm may exit the body on its own. Surgery may be the only treatment option for certain patients if the medication isn’t helping.

There are complications that are associated with a tapeworm infection. Depending on where the tapeworm is attached, they can cause problems in ones nervous system and brain. Seizures, loss of eyesight and even death could occur if the infection gets bad enough. Tapeworm eggs are also dangerous enough to effect the way organs function. Adult tapeworms can cause organs to rupture or block the way that they are supposed to be working.

Did you know that tapeworms can be up to 50 feet long? If you are concerned that you have a tapeworm infection it is important to see the doctor immediately. Avoiding the doctor will only cause further problems for your body.