Guinea worm disease is caused by parasites that live on water fleas and is contracted by drinking water containing fleas. The disease is prevalent in remote areas of Africa, India, and Asia. The World Health Organization has launched a campaign to eradicate the disease, and by 2008, incidents had dropped to around 5,000. Prevention is the only known treatment, and filtering or boiling drinking water is the best method.
Guinea worm disease, also called dracunculiasis, is a parasitic infestation. It is caused by microscopic parasites that live on the bodies of some types of water fleas. People get infected by drinking water that contains fleas. The parasite turns into a worm that travels from the intestines and eventually erupts through the skin. The worms typically migrate to the arms, legs, or feet, but can appear anywhere on the body.
Water fleas that contain the parasite that can lead to guinea worm disease are found in remote locations in Africa, India and parts of Asia. In 1985, the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a serious and widespread campaign to eradicate the disease. He was helped in part by other international aid groups such as the Carter Foundations and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Their goal was to educate people living in villages near infested water supplies how best to avoid the disease. When the campaign began, there were believed to be around 3.5 million cases, and by 2008, the incidents had dropped to around 5,000.
Guinea worm disease is typically spread by drinking or bathing in water infested with water fleas that carry the parasite. After the parasite enters the body, it stays in the intestines until it turns into a worm. The worm travels through the body until it gets just under the top layer of skin. There it continues to grow until it is about 3 feet (91 cm) long and about as big as a spaghetti noodle.
The eruption process usually takes about a year. Once the worm reaches full growth, it’s usually easy to see just under the skin. At this point, it usually begins to be painful, and moving the infested area may become difficult or impossible. As the worm begins to break through the skin, the pain typically becomes much more severe, with the full eruption sometimes taking more than ten days to complete.
People at risk of guinea worm disease often live in poor rural areas that lack clean drinking water. The risk of contracting the disease is greatest during the rainy season, as this is typically the time when the worms begin migrating. Infested people can also bathe in drinking water, which adds to the problem.
There is no known treatment for guinea worm disease other than prevention. Filtering or boiling drinking water has proven to be the best method, as well as educating people at risk about ways to avoid disease. Complications that could develop from the infestation are secondary infections and possible paralysis.
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