What are the symptoms of liver fluke infection?

Being infected with parasites is something that almost everyone must experience in their lifetime, because parasites are everywhere in life and people can hardly eliminate them completely. Therefore, everyone is at risk of infection. There are many types of parasites. Among them, liver flukes are more harmful and can bring devastating disasters to people's bodies. Let's take a look at the symptoms of infection with liver flukes.

The incubation period of liver fluke disease is about one month. Mild infection often has no obvious symptoms. Only worm eggs are found in the patient's feces. A few have mild upper abdominal discomfort, diarrhea, etc. Those with more serious infections have a slow onset and, in addition to gastrointestinal symptoms such as poor appetite, diarrhea, and abdominal distension, they often have symptoms of neurasthenia such as palpitations, insomnia, and dizziness. The left lobe of the liver is the most enlarged. In a few patients with repeated infections, it may eventually develop into cirrhosis and portal hypertension. Children with severe infection may suffer from malnutrition and growth disorders. People who lack immunity to the disease or are infected with large quantities of the disease repeatedly may suddenly develop chills, high fever, and diarrhea, as well as liver enlargement and tenderness before worm eggs are found in the stool. A few may also have splenomegaly and jaundice, and a significant increase in eosinophils. The disease is generally divided into the following clinical types:

① Hepatitis type: the most common, with symptoms such as fatigue, upper abdominal discomfort, abdominal distension, loss of appetite, discomfort or dull pain in the liver area. Physical examination shows mild to moderate liver enlargement, often without tenderness, and some patients have mild elevation of serum transaminases. If the epidemiological history is not carefully inquired, the disease may be misdiagnosed as viral hepatitis.

② Cholangitis type: The patient has chills, chills, fever, accompanied by paroxysmal upper abdominal colic, sometimes jaundice, and an increased total white blood cell count in the peripheral blood. This type of patient often has complications of cholangitis or gallstones.

Gastroenteritis type: manifested by abdominal distension, diarrhea, bowel movements about 3 to 4 times a day, without pus or blood, and often no abnormal findings under microscopic examination.

Cirrhosis type: characterized by an enlarged and hard liver, ascites, splenomegaly, decreased plasma albumin, anemia and lower limb edema. This type is more common in children during the epidemic period and is often accompanied by malnutrition.

Dwarfism: This type is often accompanied by cirrhosis and often occurs in children with severe liver infection.

Latent type: This type is the most common and generally asymptomatic. It is only discovered during physical examinations, epidemiological surveys, or when seeking medical treatment for other diseases.

Mixed type: All of the above types occur simultaneously during the illness.