Parasites Won't Go Away

[jasonD2]

So ive been having some parasites show up on my stool tests for the past several months. First time there was one, 2nd time there were 3 and now there are 5. My doctor and I are stumped. I have no idea where im getting these bugs and if the test is actually detecting anything that that can be considered infectious, since i dont really have the classic parasitic disease symptoms. He has never seen this with other patients but its upsetting to me. I have had gastritis for several months and its still possible one of these bugs could be causing it, but i cant get rid of them I was on meds to treat the bugs for 2 weeks and i started feeling better but then they came back along with 3 new ones. Has anyone had this experience? i am really lost - i feel like this is preventing my gut from healing. im afraid to start taking meds again until i figure out where they are coming from. I am super anal when it comes to how i cook & prepare my food and what i put in my body. Unless the spring water im drinking is infected, i have no idea where else i can be getting this from.

id appreciate feedback - thanks

[kareng]

So ive been having some parasites show up on my stool tests for the past several months. First time there was one, 2nd time there were 3 and now there are 5. My doctor and I are stumped. I have no idea where im getting these bugs and if the test is actually detecting anything that that can be considered infectious, since i dont really have the classic parasitic disease symptoms. He has never seen this with other patients but its upsetting to me. I have had gastritis for several months and its still possible one of these bugs could be causing it, but i cant get rid of them I was on meds to treat the bugs for 2 weeks and i started feeling better but then they came back along with 3 new ones. Has anyone had this experience? i am really lost - i feel like this is preventing my gut from healing. im afraid to start taking meds again until i figure out where they are coming from. I am super anal when it comes to how i cook & prepare my food and what i put in my body. Unless the spring water im drinking is infected, i have no idea where else i can be getting this from.

id appreciate feedback - thanks

How awful! I used to work in a childrens hospital so based on kids with worms some things to think about: Have you been out of the country even a year before you noticed? (Mexico counts) Drank water on a camping trip from a clear stream? Is your spring water bottles or from your own spring? Do you have pets? If they have some bugs, they can give to you. Some animals require 2 full treatments not just the quick de-worming. Its possible that that same principle applies to you. One treatment may not have been enough to get rid of eggs or nymphs (babies).

Have they studied the bugs & identified them? You may need a more indepth analysis to identify the type.

Good luck.

[jasonD2]

Thanks- Spring water is from whole foods and deer park, been to France in October but I had 3 bugs prior to the trip, i dont have pets and havent been camping in over a year. im not around kids and live alone. ive even been boiling my filtered tap water before washing vegetables and fruits. im so confused

[kareng]

Thanks- Spring water is from whole foods and deer park, been to France in October but I had 3 bugs prior to the trip, i dont have pets and havent been camping in over a year. im not around kids and live alone. ive even been boiling my filtered tap water before washing vegetables and fruits. im so confused

Jason, France usually isn't one of the trouble spots anyway. My best suggestion right now is that you insist they id the bugs. Also, its possible that when they treated them they didn't treat long enough but that kind of stuff can be unpleasant. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. Karen

[GFinDC]

I've read web pages that claim diatomaceous earth can get rid of parasites. I have no idea if it works or not though. Just thot I would mention it in case anyone else has experience with it. Supposedly people feed it to horses sometimes.

[Wolicki]

Jason

I just read a link about parasites and treatment and had an idea: since we Celiacs have difficutly absorbing nutrients, etc. and you were having active Celiac at the time, maybe the challenge is that the meds you took to treat the parasites were not properly absorbed and that is why you did not respond? I had that problem with all kinds of meds before I started to heal.

Also, do you wash the bejeezers out of your fruits and veggies?

Janie

[jasonD2]

Thanks for the insight. I was already gluten free for quite some time when I had my first round of meds to treat the parasites. I also had a recent test that showed I am absorbing B12, folate & other nutrients quite well, so i dont suspect there is an absorption problem.

Also when i was on the meds I actually was starting to feel a little better

Yep i wash my vegetables and fruits and have even been using filtered tap water that i boil.

Keep the ideas coming though

[Wolicki]

I am thinking you need to take another round of drugs to kill them off. The reason I say this is because last year I had a fungal infection of the GI tract. I had to take meds daily for THREE months to kill it off. The usual dose was like a month, max. My thought is that it might be a little more difficult to treat these things because of leaky gut. I am not sure how long it takes to heal a leaky gut, but I know mine is not quite there after 7 months.

Definitely talk to your doc about treating it aggressively. From what I read today, many of your symptoms are probably coming from the bugs

[jasonD2]

Yep might have to go on Alinia again, which im dreading cause of the side effects and potential for developing new allergies

[Jestgar]

They need to actually identify the parasites. Different beasties may require different meds.

[burdee]

Hi Jason: Were those parasites described on your test as 'taxonomy unavailable' which 'likely indicates an ingested protozoan and not a human parasite'? I had those results on my last 2 stool tests? Or were your 'parasites' treatable parasites like giardia, cryptosporidia, etc.?

I also have a history of contracting one intestinal 'bug' after another. I was diagnosed and successfully treated for klebsiella (bacteria), then enterobacter cloacae (bacteria), then candida (fungus) and cryptospordia (parasite), then clostridium difficile (bacteria) and most recently achromobacter (bacteria). My test results showed treatment eliminated all but the last bacteria (achromobacter), because I just finished treatment for that one. However, I suspect and have read studies that suggested that treating for one 'gut bug' made me more susceptible to developing a new bug 'overgrowth'. I'm certain that I contracted c-diff during a long treatment (with nystatin) for candida, even though I took lots of probiotics. I suspect I contracted achromobacter while treating for c-diff (for 7 months) even though I took high dose probiotics.

Even though I took probiotics while treating achromobacter with caprylic acid, I plan to follow that treatment with high dose probiotics (127 billion good bacteria per dose) and hope I can avoid yet another gut infection. Nevertheless, given my history and susceptibility to 'gut bugs', I also plan to take another stool test if I develop new symptoms, especially cramping pain, which is unrelated to celiac disease and/or food allergens.

SUE

So ive been having some parasites show up on my stool tests for the past several months. First time there was one, 2nd time there were 3 and now there are 5. My doctor and I are stumped. I have no idea where im getting these bugs and if the test is actually detecting anything that that can be considered infectious, since i dont really have the classic parasitic disease symptoms. He has never seen this with other patients but its upsetting to me. I have had gastritis for several months and its still possible one of these bugs could be causing it, but i cant get rid of them I was on meds to treat the bugs for 2 weeks and i started feeling better but then they came back along with 3 new ones. Has anyone had this experience? i am really lost - i feel like this is preventing my gut from healing. im afraid to start taking meds again until i figure out where they are coming from. I am super anal when it comes to how i cook & prepare my food and what i put in my body. Unless the spring water im drinking is infected, i have no idea where else i can be getting this from.

id appreciate feedback - thanks

[jasonD2]

they are all identified

[ravenwoodglass]

they are all identified

What were they identified as?

[jasonD2]

Blastocystis hominis

Endolimax nana

Necator americanus (hookworm)

Strongyloides sp.

Unknown parasite

[Nightingale8472]

I'm not a doctor, but do you spend a lot of time barefoot? You probably caught at least two of these from the soil.

Blastocystis hominis - amoeba, Treatment is available but is not always effective. Method of infection is largely unknown.(CDC)

Endolimax nana - protozoa, They are single-celled parasites that are commonly found in the intestines but never cause illness. They do not harm the body, even in people with weak immune systems. There is no reason to treat this protozoa, as it is harmless. (CDC)

Necator americanus (hookworm) - On contact with the human host, the larvae penetrate the skin and are carried through the blood vessels to the heart and then to the lungs. They penetrate into the pulmonary alveoli, ascend the bronchial tree to the pharynx, and are swallowed . The larvae reach the small intestine, where they reside and mature into adults. Adult worms live in the lumen of the small intestine, where they attach to the intestinal wall with resultant blood loss by the host. Most adult worms are eliminated in 1 to 2 years, but the longevity may reach several years. In the United States, hookworm infections are generally treated with albendazole*. Mebendazole* or pyrantel pamoate* can also be used. (CDC) As an aside, experiments are currently being done with hookworm as a potential treatment for celiac, as it is theorized that hookworm infection can suppress the immune reaction in the intestines. This not a good reason to go out and catch it without medical supervision.

Strongyloides sp. - Roundworms. Filariform larvae in contaminated soil penetrate the human skin , and are transported to the lungs where they penetrate the alveolar spaces; they are carried through the bronchial tree to the pharynx, are swallowed and then reach the small intestine . In the small intestine they molt twice and become adult female worms . The females live threaded in the epithelium of the small intestine and by parthenogenesis produce eggs , which yield rhabditiform larvae. The rhabditiform larvae can either be passed in the stool (see "Free-living cycle" above), or can cause autoinfection. (CDC).

Unknown parasite - can't help you here.

[ravenwoodglass]

The round and hookworms could also be picked up from a pet. Have you got a pet that has not had a stool sample checked? If you do I would get it done. If you did by some chance pick it up from your cat or dog that would possibly cause you to be reinfected even if the treatment was successful in killing them the first time.

[Pac]

Do you eat any veggies like potatoes, carrots, lettuce or herbs that are in contact with soil? Do you have a garden? You might be getting reinfected without realising it. Boiled water won't help you much, these parasites are mostly contracted from soil or feces-contaminated soil (the endolimax nana is supposed to be an indicator of consumption of feces-contaminated food, although it's harmless otherwise). Look for all possible means of catching these bugs - neighbour's cat in your garden, contaminated soil in your flower pots, peel all veggies you can or buy just veggies grown on hydroponic solution, not in soil. Some of the bugs are able to reinfect you directly from your gut if you have weaker immune system.

I'm a zoologist, not a human doctor, but if you were in my care, I would do two rounds of de-worming ten days apart and would ignore the protozoans unless they are growing in numbers or causing symptoms. And also use some good probiotics. (disclaimer: human and veterinary medicine practices may differ)

Good luck!

[jasonD2]

No but i live in a bldg with a lot of dogs- im wondering if i tracked it into my apartment and somehow picked it up

[jasonD2]

All the vegetables I eat are cooked- stopped eating fruits too