GROUP 3

NAME INDEX NUMBER

1. SAM FRANCIS QWAMI 01222470B

2. ABBEY FRANCIS 01221536B

3. AGGREY ELIZABETH 01220987B

4. ADDAE SOLOMON 01222246B

5. KPORVIE REXFORD ANAI 01221309B

6. REBECCA ADJEI SAFOWAA 01222435B

7. AKWASI AMOABENG AKWABI 01221273B

 DRACUNCULUS MEDINENSIS

INTRODUCTION

Dracunculus medinensis is a nematode that causes dracunculiasis. It is also called

the guinea worm disease and is caused by the large female nematode which is the
longest nematode infecting humans. The adult female is longer than the male and
can grow up to about 1m in length inside the body of the human host. The worm
inhabits the cutaneous and subcutaneous tissues of infected persons.

SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFI CATION OF D. MEDINENSIS

Kingdom: Animalia
Superfamily: Dracunculoidea
Phylum: Nematoda
Family: Dracunculidae
Class: Secernentea
Genus: Dracunculus
Order: Camallanida
Species: D. medinensis

MORPHOLOGY
Adult Worm:

Shape:

 Slender
 Twine thread
 Cylindrical
 Smooth body

Size:

 Male: 4cm
 Female: 60-80cm

Lifespan

 Male: Not more than 6 months

 Female: 1 year
HABITAT

Intermediate host: crustacean (copepods)

Definitive host: Human Beings

TRANSMISSION
By ingesting the copepods (infective larvae) in unfiltered water

LIFE CYCLE

HUMAN CYCLE

Humans become infected by drinking unfiltered water containing copepods (small

crustaceans) that have been infected with D. medinensis larvae. After ingestion, the
copepods die and release the larvae, which then penetrate the host’s stomach,
intestinal wall, and enter into the abdominal cavity and retroperitoneal space. After
maturing, an adult male worm dies after mating while the female migrates into the
subcutaneous tissues towards the surface of the skin. After about a year of
infection, the female worm forms a blister on the skin, generally on the distal lower
extremity (foot), which breaks open. It can also emerge from other parts of the
body like the head, torso, upper extremities, buttocks, and genitalia. The patient
then seeks to relieve the local discomfort by placing their foot in water, but when
the lesion comes into contact with water, the female worm emerges and releases
her larvae into the water

COPEPOD CYCLE
The larvae released into the water are then ingested by a copepod, and after two
weeks (and two molts) the larvae become infectious. Ingestion of the copepods in
drinking water is the last stage that completes the cycle.

DIAGRAMMATIC REPRESENTATION OF LIFE CYCLE

PATHOGENESIS

Adult female produces toxins that causes:

 lnflammation
 Blistering + ulceration of skin

The inflamed papule causes:

 Burns
 Itches

EPIDEMIOLOGY

Location

 Worldwide
 African countries (Chad, Ethiopia, Mali & South Sudan)
 Tropical Africa
 Middle East
 India

CLINICAL FINDINGS

 Blistering & ulceration of skin (in lower extremities)

  Nausea
 Rash at site
 Diarrhea
 Dizziness
 Localized edema
 Reddish papule
 Blister + itching

LABORATORY DIAGNOSIS

1. Detection of adult worms: This is possible when the female worm appears
at the surface of the skin.
2. Detection of first stage larva: Specific diagnosis is made by the
microscopic demonstration of the first stage larva in the discharge fluid.
3. Intradermal test: Infection of Dracunculus antigens intradermally causes a
wheal to appear in the course of 24 hours in positive cases.
4. X-ray examination:

a) Worms in deeper tissue after the death either become calcified

or absorbed.
b) The position of calcified worm may be located by skiagraphy.

5. Blood examination
TREATMENT

 There is no specific drugs or medicines to treat or prevent the disease.

 The mainstay of treatment is the extractions of the adult worm from the
patient using a stick at the surface and wrapping the worm or few cm per
day.
 Full extraction can take several days or weeks.
 Topical antibodies are applied to prevent secondary bacterial infections and
the affected body part is bandaged with fresh gauze to protect the site.
 Surgical removal of worm using local anesthesia is another method of
treatment
 Albendazole, Mebendazole, Niridazole, thiabendazole and metronidazole are
used as anti-inflammatory agents.
 Analgesics such as aspirin or ibuprofen are given to help reduce the pain and
inflammation.

PREVENTION AND CONTROL

The disease can be transmitted only by drinking contaminated water and can be
completely prevented through to relatively simple measures.

 Preventing people from drinking Cyclops contaminated water

 Avoid drinking contaminated water
 Filtering water
 Boiling
 Treatment of water with larvicides to kill Cyclops
  Preventing people infected with the worm from entering water sources used
for drinking.

REFERENCES

1. Schmidt G. D. and L S. Roberts. 2009. Foundations of Parasitology, 8th ed.

2. CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention."Dracunculusmedinensis."2009.
http://www.dpd.cdc.gov/dpdx/HTML/Dracunculiasis.htm

3. Parasite lost: Exterminating Africa’s horror worms by Debora Mackenzie 16

th March2010 – www.newscientist.com