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Ascaris lumbricoides
Ascariasis is an infection caused by a parasitic roundworm, Ascaris
lumbricoides. This is the most common intestinal worm infection. It is found in
association with poor personal hygiene, poor sanitation, and in places where human feces
are used as fertilizer. Intake of food or drink contaminated with roundworm eggs causes
infection.
The eggs hatch and release larvae within the intestine. The
larvae then move through the bloodstream to the lungs, exit up through the large airways
of the lungs, and are swallowed back into the stomach and intestines. During movement
through the lungs the larvae may produce an uncommon form of pneumonia called eosinophilic
pneumonia. Once back in the intestines, they mature into adult roundworms. Adult worms
as seen in picture
live in the intestine where they lay eggs that are present in feces |
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