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DiscussionLiver Fluke Fasciola Hepatica and the lives it wrecks
Infectious Diseases | Last Active: Nov 24 10:12pm | Replies (27)Comment receiving replies
Replies to "Anyone know what this is? I have them coming up every time I eat, for a..."
VPEAR - I want add that I’m NOT saying the the things in the last image you posted were not Fasciola hepatica or some other “fluke” or trematode or helminth parasite. They actually looked like fasciola hepatica to me. I just wanted to say I could not tell for sure. For instance, the first pictures that @inthedark posted looked to me VERY MUCH like the first flukes/parasites I vomited up for hours on end from my stomach and throat and lungs after I took my first anti-parasitic drug of any kind (Praziquantel), which seemed to get rid of chunk of large ones, but did not cure me of them. My experience has been very similar to what @inthedark has described, including have trouble getting medical professionals to treat you, often because they’re not familiar with this. It’s hard to get treated, and it’s hard to get a definitive diagnosis, to get labs to perform an antibody test (to see if you have antibodies against a specific parasite, or to see if a sample of the parasite reacts to an anti-parasite antibody), or to perform a ‘PCR’ test, to see if there is DNA from a specific parasite in a sample. To get good treatment, you need a definitive diagnosis. But an individual can’t get the CDC or Mayo Clinic Labs to give you a test (even offering to pay any sum necessary) without being referred by a state health agency. And some state health agencies (such Missouri, where I live) no longer perform parasite/worm identification. It’s a like a chicken/egg conundrum without an easy entry point. I’m working on cracking this riddle, to find an entry point to get a definitive diagnosis, and ultimately good treatment. Not just for myself, but so I can add information about how to do this to this discussion. ☺ Because with the right drugs, there is honestly a way out of this. If the parasite you I or any of the other members of this discussion are afflicted with is Fasciola hepatica, then ridiculously, two treatments of a drug called triclabendazole 12 hours apart can work wonders for a cost of like...$4 a dose. It’s ridiculous. And the drug isn’t dangerous or addictive or anything. It’s just hard to get your hands on in the US, because the condition is rare here. But have hope, because there is a cure out there.
That picture looks to me as if it might well be a liver fluke/intestinal fluke. Problem is…when you’re pulling them out of your mouth (I do the same thing) its like finding fish washed up on the beach. They’re dead. They may not be in great shape. So, it’s hard to tell. (I’m always wondering…is that just food that’s coming up?) That’s why it’s SO important to get a real medical diagnosis (through, for instance, a test to see if you have antibodies against a specific parasite, which is how Covid test work. Another more involved, expensive test, is a “PCR” test, which can detect the DNA from different species of parasites.) But you can’t get these in a kit like a covid test. This condition is really confusing. I’m older. I have a grown daughter who’s a medical professional in Chicago. I’m a technical analyst now, but I used to be a molecular biologist who studied fungi. So, I know something of Biology. But that actually doesn’t do me much good, because I’m not an expert in the field. I could show you literally hundreds of pictures of the things that have come out of my mouth, nose, ears, and things I’ve passed in my stool. This condition came up for me after working in Germany, England, and Italy on and off for about three years. It’s all new to me as well. I take pictures of everything that I can. I also keep samples in alcohol to forward them to a laboratory. But there aren’t very many labs that I can find that specialize in this area. Your picture might actually be a couple of thise things grouped together. That's why I keep these little sample vials around and bottle of isoporopano (running alccoho), because if it's a clump of individual parasitses, the will usually separate in the alcoho.