Guinea Worm Disease; An almost extinct type of terrible disease.

Exactly ten days ago I published an article about a certain extinct disease called Kuru disease, this disease was gotten as a result of the barbaric practice of consuming some part of a deceased brain, that discovery was so weird for me that even after writing about it, I took some time to read through other references to gain more insight on the topic, as a result of that, I decided to do some more readings on some other infections/ diseases that are as weird as kuru and I certainly found a couple of them, so I will be taking some time to share some of them from time to time, just in case you also want to know what kuru disease is all about, then catch up with this

In today's journey of discovery and lessons, I will be writing on Guinea Worm Disease also called Dracunculiasis or dracontiasis, it is a human infection caused by a parasite called guinea worm also called Dracunculus medinensis. Drancunculiasis is a Latin word translated to mean, affliction with little dragons, it describes the burning pain associated linked with the infection.

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The disease is now very rare, but that has not always been the case as it has been a historically fairly common disease affecting millions of people a year in and out. Dracunculiasis is spread through the consumption of drinking water containing Guinea worms, larvae are immature forms of worms, particularly affecting poor communities in remote parts of Africa, these areas that do not have safe water to drink. The disease can attack at any time of the year but is more common during the peak of transmission season which varies from one country to another. In wet areas, there is a possibility of getting the infection during the dry season, at the time when surface water has started to dry up and get stagnant. While the infection is normally human type, it can affect animals also, particularly dogs.

When people drink water that is unfiltered from ponds and other stagnant water that contains copepods, the copepods swallow Guinea worm larvae, so when humans consume water bodies that have copepods that have swallowed Guinea worm larvae, the human would develop Guinea worm disease. Another means of transmitting the infection is through the infection gotten through the consumption of some aquatic animals like frogs or fish that may have swallowed infected copepods and may have carried Guinea worm larvae but do not suffer the effect of the infection themselves, at the point when the frogs or fish are consumed raw or in its undercooked form, the Guinea worm larvae are released into the human or animal digestive tract.

Let me take you through the interesting journey of what happens after ingestion.

After copepods have found their way into the human body either through consumption of water or raw/undercooked fish/frogs, they die and release the larvae which penetrate the stomach of the host and its intestinal wall, then move to the connective tissues of the abdomen where they mate. After mating, the female worm which is pregnant, grow to 2-3 feet which is 60-100 centimeter in length, during the next 10-14 months or even one year in some case. Approximately, a year after infection, the adult female is then ready for the release of her larvae, she moves to a spot slightly beneath the skin and that is where there is an emergence of a blister, and that is when the adult female worm will eventually emerge from, there is no specific spot for the blister as it could come up from anywhere around the body, but usually it forms on the legs and the feet, creating a very painful burning feeling, and it bursts within 24-72 hours.

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Signs that show the presence of Guinea Worm Disease.

People do not usually show symptoms of Guinea worm until about one year after infection, which is around when the blister will burst and the worm will be out on the skin, the infected human will develop fever, swelling, and pain in the area. Those who live in extremely rural regions do not usually have access to health care, it is always a very painful experience when the adult female comes out of the skin, it will sometimes take time to come out and even get disabling sometimes.

The wound which is caused by the emerging worm may also develop a bacterial infection which would make the pain worse and increase the time an infected person can function which ranges from weeks to months, in a case where the joint is infected and becomes locked, permanent damage is done to the affected region.

Anyone who drinks water from a pond or other stagnated form of water stands a risk of being infected with Guinea worm larvae. (Larvae are the immature forms of Guinea worm) Those who live in villages where there has been a previous or existing case of Guinea worm, or there is a case of raw or undercooked aquatic animals either in part or full
The sure way to prevent the occurrence of Dracunculiasis is through;

• The filtering of drinking water through a piece of fine-mesh cheesecloth.
• Boiling water.
• Drinking only chlorinated water.
• Properly cook fish/frogs before eating.
• Ensure that people with swellings, blisters, visible worms, and injuries on their skin are not allowed to enter into water bodies.
  Of course, the disease has almost gone into extinction now, as more people are aware of the terrible effects of drinking infected water, and are doing everything they can to stay away from infection.

Guinea worm is a severe illness and not one to joke with, it creates serious suffering for infected people as well as an economic or social burden for the communities affected. Adult female worms gently creep out of the kin creating so much pain and disability, adults who have active Dracunculiasis may find it difficult to walk or even go to work while children may be unable to play or go to school. The most terrible part of the disease is that, it can happen year after year, that it happened recently does not mean it cannot happen again.

There is no specific drug or vaccine to treat Dracunculiasis, but there are management tips to help with the condition;
Like I said earlier, ensure that the person who has feasible symptoms does not enter into a drinkable water source, then ensure that the wound is appropriately cleaned and the affected body part could be soaked in water but very far away from water sources to prevent contamination and to encourage the worm to contract and release larvae, emptying the worm of larvae will make it easier to take out the worm. The worm is then wrapped around a rolled piece of gauze or a stick, this is to maintain some form of tension on the worm and then encourage the worm to come out even more, this act will also prevent the worm from slipping back inside.

Gently, traction is applied to slowly pull out the worm, the pulling stops when resistance is met to avoid breaking the worm, this is because the worm can be very long. Afterward, topical antibiotics are applied to areas of the wound to prevent secondary bacterial infections, the affected body parts are then bandaged with fresh gauze to protect the area. Pain relief is also given to help ease the process of pain, this same procedure is repeated daily until all worms are pulled out successfully.

Conclusion.

This just summarizes everything you have been reading ever since, Dracunculiasis or Guinea worm disease is a disease of terrible water intake and under-cooked aquatic animals, but it is now going into extinction because even people who live in rural areas now understand the importance of drinking clean, safe water.

References.

https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/guineaworm/treatment.html

https://www.cartercenter.org/health/guinea_worm/index.html

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/dracunculiasis-(guinea-worm-disease)

https://www.msdmanuals.com/home/infections/parasitic-infections-nematodes-roundworms/dracunculiasis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracunculiasis

https://www.britannica.com/science/guinea-worm-disease