The Nastiest Parasites In The World

#1 The Guinea Worm

The guinea worm is a nematode that causes disease. It is often called the guinea worm disease.

#2 Symptoms Appear After A Full Year Of Infection

The disease is most commonly cause by drinking water that is contaminated by worms and water fleas. When infected by the worm, there are no symptoms until after a year or so, when the skin begins to feel a burning sensation. This is the worm developing blisters as it grows underneath the host's skin.

#3 The Worms Can Cause Spinal Cord Injury Or Death

Within a few weeks of the burning feeling the host begins to feel nausea and starts vomiting on a daily basis. They also feel fever, rashes, and dizziness. If the worm is not located and removed, it could result in death or spinal cord paralysis.

#4 The Worm Can Grow Up To 2 Feet In Length Inside The Body

Guinea worms can grow over 2 feet long. Although the worm can be removed, they do form ulcers that become infected. The pain can last for 2-3 months. There are no vaccines to prevent guinea worm disease but antibiotics help in healing the infected areas. The worm must be removed by wrapping it around a stick and pulling it out slowly.

#5 Filarial Worms

Filarial worms are parasites that are passed onto humans through mosquitos. Similar to guinea worms, filarial worms reside in the body for roughly a full year before they move slowly through the lymphatic system.

#6 The Cause Of Elephantitis

The worms clog up areas where fluids would normally pass in the body, causing the infected areas to enlarge. This is often called elephantiasis tropica, or elephants disease.

#7 Known To Cause River Blindness In Infected People

Along with the enormous growth in the infected area, they cause infection, rashes, and arthritis, and can even cause river blindness, the leading cause of blindness in the world.

#8 Pinworms

Pinworms are nematodes responsible for one of the most common infections in the world. The infection is known as enterobiasis. The pinworm is very tiny, reaching only 13mm in length but can cause extreme pain in the body and sometimes lead to itching and rashes near the anus.

#9 Pinworms Are Often Digested Through Contaminated Food And Water

Possible symptoms from the pinworm include insomnia, rashes, high fever, irritability, urinary issues, and rapid weight loss. The pinworm eggs are often ingested through food and contaminated water.

#10 Medicine Can Kill The Worms But Not The Eggs

There are medicines that can kill the pinworm in the body, however, they sometimes reappear after a few years, unannounced and even worse. This is due to the fact that the drugs can kill the pinworms, but not any eggs already in the body. Patients are required to seek ongoing treatments for this parasite.

#11 New World Screwworm

The screwworm is a parasite known for feasting on live tissue. They are indigenous to Central and South America.

#12 Screwworms Attack Larger Mammals

The screwworm has been known to infect large animals such as cattle, horses, and sheep. However, there have been many recent cases where they were found in humans.

#13 Several Cases Of Infected Humans

One young girl from the United States was visiting Brazil and returned with lumps all over her head and a burning feeling. When rushed to the ER she was found to have a large infestation of the worms feeding on her scalp and head. There was a foul odor coming from the wounds and the parasites then began eating the flesh around her head. Doctors managed to get rid of them by using jelly and bacon to lure out the worms and their offspring. She survived with a lot of scarring and had to undergo morphine treatments for the pain.

#14 Rochelle Became Infected After Visiting Peru

Rochelle Harris returned to her home in England from a short trip to Peru, where she began experiencing agonizing headaches and severe pain around her neck and face.

#15 She Had Screwworms In Her Ears

Rochelle began suffering from an unexplained discharge coming from her ears. When she went to her doctor's office they soon discovered that both her ears had been infected with screwworms. Screwworms invade flesh wounds then feed off the discharge and hatch eggs.

#16 Doctors Used Maggots To Help Remove Infection

Rochelle was ultimately cured by the use of maggot therapy, a process in which live maggots are used to clean the wounds from infection once the worms are removed. However, she has gaping wounds in her neck and head, and has lost her hearing in one ear.

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