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According to Dr. Hermann R. Bueno of
the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in London, “parasites
are the missing diagnosis in the genesis
of many chronic health problems, including
diseases of the gastrointestinal tract
and endocrine system.” 1
While parasitic infection may be an underlying
etiological factor in several chronic disease
processes, doctors often do not consider
the potential for parasitic involvement
because signs and symptoms of parasitic
infection often resemble those of other
diseases. Moreover, it has been
shown that parasite testing is a reasonable
approach to the detection of causative
agents for chronic gastrointestinal disorders.
2
Most Americans are inclined to believe
that parasitic infection is a rare and
exotic occurrence, limited to those who
have traveled to distant, tropical lands. However,
for a number of reasons, there has been
an increase in the incidence of parasitic
infection in this country.
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Reasons for this increase
include the following: 3
Contamination of the water supply
Increased use of day care centers
Travel to, or from countries where parasitic
infection is endemic
Household pets
Consumption of exotic and uncooked foods
Antibiotic use
The “sexual revolution”
Signs and symptoms of parasitic infection vary
from one individual to another. The
more common signs and symptoms are: constipation,
diarrhea, bloating, gas, symptoms of irritable
bowel syndrome, arthralgias, myalgias, anemia,
increased allergic reactions, skin lesions,
agitation and anxiety, difficulty with sleep,
decreased energy, malnutrition and decreased
immune function.
Infection can occur by four different
pathways. These routes include contaminated
food or water, insect vectors, sexual contact,
and passage through the skin and nose. A
thorough patient history will help assess the
possibility of parasitic infection and the need
for appropriate testing to confirm the suspicion.
4
Definitive diagnosis can be difficult
because the life cycle of some parasites allows
them to escape detection in standard tests. Interfering
factors such as barium, bismuth, enemas, and
antimicrobials such as antibiotics may further
complicate detection of parasites in the stool.
5
1 Gittleman AL. Guess What
Came to Dinner: parasites and your health .
Garden City Park: Avery Publishing Groups Inc. 1993.
p. ix.
2Zdero
M, Cabrera G, Ponce de Leon P, et al. Parasitosis
in an adult population with chronic gastrointestinal
disorders. Acta Gastroenterol Latinoam .
1997;27(2):67-73.
3 Gittleman AL. Ibid. pp.
9-10.
4 Ibid., pp. 22-3
5 Ibid. p.93 All
lab tests can be done through the mail in the privacy
of your own home, except blood tests, we send you
to a lab to have your blood drawn for these. After
you pay for the test we mail you the kit, the results
take two weeks, the test results will be mailed
to us and we will call you to go over the results,
its that easy! All tests include the consultation
for the report of findings.Click on test of interest
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