Ascariasis

Ascariasis is a disease caused by Ascaris lumbricoides (commonly referred to as roundworm) parasitizing the human small intestine or other organs. Ascariasis is the most common parasitic disease, widely prevalent in China, with children being more frequently affected. In the early stage of the disease, the migration of larvae in the human body can cause respiratory symptoms; when adult worms parasitize the small intestine, they cause abdominal pain and intestinal dysfunction. Clinical manifestations vary greatly depending on the site of parasitism or invasion and the degree of infection. When limited to the intestine, it is called intestinal ascariasis. Most intestinal ascariasis presents as asymptomatic infection, while pediatric patients often have varying degrees of gastrointestinal symptoms. When roundworms enter the bile duct, pancreas, appendix, liver, and other organs, or when larvae migrate to the lungs, eyes, brain, thyroid, spinal cord, and other organs, they can cause corresponding ectopic lesions. In severe cases, complications such as cholangitis, pancreatitis, appendicitis, roundworm intestinal obstruction, intestinal perforation, and peritonitis may occur.