Amoebiasis - Causes, Symptoms, Treatment

Definition

To understand amoebiasis first one should know amoeba. An amoeba is a single celled organism. Amoebiasis is an infection caused by the amoeba Entamoeba Histolytica. Entamoeba Histolytica is found in food and water contaminated with human faeces. amoebiasis is occurred when something containing this amoebiasis is swallowed. it moves in the digestive system and settle in the small and large intestine.

There are mainly two types of amoebiasis:-

1. Intestinal Amoebiasis: It is frequently asymptomatic and varies from fulminant dysentery with fever, chills, and bloody or mucoid diarrhea to mild abdominal discomfort with diarrhea containing blood or mucus alternating with periods of constipation or remission.
2. Extraintestinal Amoebiasis: It occurs when the parasite invades other organs such as liver, lung, brain or skin. The incubation period varies from a few days to several months or years (commonly 2-4 weeks).

Amoebiasis Causes

1. It is caused by a protozoa, Entamoeba Histolytica. this protozoa is mainly spread through water contaminated by faeces or from food served by contaminated hands. when E.histolytica enters the small intestine, active amoebic parasites are released, which can invade the epithelial cells of the large intestines, causing flask shaped ulcers. this disease may also occurs through the organs like the liver, lungs, and brain by invading the venous system of the intestines. This shows that the ultimate cause of suffering is hidden than the exposed causative factor i.e. amoeba.
2. Amoebiasis is especially common in parts of the world where human faeces are used as fertilizer and is more likely to affect people who live or have traveled in developing countries, where sanitation and hygiene is poor.

Amoebiasis Symptoms

1. Due to infection in intestine the patients have lower abdominal pain and diarrhea. after pain patients may have dysentery with blood and mucus in stool.
2. The patient have a high grade fever.
3. The children may have severe pain and a high grade fever with diarrhea.
4. Serious gastric distention of bowel can be occurred.
5. Sometimes there may be pain in right upper abdomen.
6. Sometimes allergic reactions can occur throughout the body, due to release of toxic substances or dead parasites inside the intestines.
7. In some cases foul smelling stools can occur.
8. Other symptoms are abdominal cramps, slimy stools etc.

Amoebiasis Treatment

1. The patients can be treated with luminal agents. the luminal agents used are liodoquinao or diloxanide furaoate.
2. The patients with acute colitis supportive therapy or rehydration and then luminal agents should be used.
3. Generally prognosis is also done unless complications of abscess rupture occurs.
4. The medicine like metronidazole, diloxanide furoate, dehydroemetine, emetine, or paromomycin can also pe prescribed.
5. The development of nitroimidazole compounds, especially metronidazole, was a major advance in the treatment of invasive amebiasis. Patients with amebic colitis should be treated with intravenous or oral metronidazole (750 mg three times daily for 5 to 10 days).
6. An array of drugs is used to treat the symptoms of mastocytosis, including antihistamines (to prevent mast cell release of chemicals), and anticholinergics (to relieve intestinal cramping). Numerous drugs are used for the treatment of specific symptoms of mastocytosis.