In general, young children and women of reproductive age have low iron stores and thus, are more susceptible to chronic blood loss and anemia from hookworm infection (5, 6). Specifically, if the infected individual’s diet is insufficient in protein and iron, anemia may develop. However, the main clinical manifestations of hookworm infection are due to prolonged intestinal blood loss. Abdominal pain may occur as adult worms first attach to the intestine (7). Hookworm infection may also result in pneumonitis when larvae migrate through the lungs. When the filariform larvae first penetrate the skin, an allergic reaction, known as ground itch, may occur. Please refer to Figure 3 for an overview of the hookworm life cycle.
#Where to get dewormer for hookworms in humans skin#
These larvae can then penetrate human skin and repeat the cycle (4-6). Over the course of two to three weeks, rhabditiform larvae molt three times and develop into the infective 元 or filariform larvae. The eggs exit the human in the stool and then hatch into the non-infective rhabditiform larvae. Adult hookworms typically live inside their human host for one to two years, and each female produce thousands of eggs per day. Adults use their teeth or cutting plates to attach to the intestinal lumen, causing blood loss in the infected individual (see Figure 2). Larvae are then coughed up, swallowed, and travel to the small intestine where they develop into the adult stage. Once inside the human, the larvae migrate through the veins until they reach the lungs. Because infective larvae mature in the soil, they tend to invade via the hands or feet. Hookworm infection occurs when third-stage larvae (元), known as filariform, come in contact with and penetrate human skin. However, the majority of the global burden of disease is due to associated morbidity and not mortality. Hookworm causes an estimated 65,000 deaths annually. As seen on the map below (Figure 1), hookworm infection is highest in sub-Saharan Africa, regions of Southeast Asia, India, Latin America, China, and the Middle East (3). Additionally, an estimated 3.2 billion people are at risk for acquiring hookworm infection (2). Current estimates of global hookworm prevalence range from 600-740 million cases (1, 2). In humans, the intestinal nematodes Ancylostoma duodenale and Necator americanus cause hookworm infection.