Rosacea, Hives, Psoriasis, and More

Medically Reviewed by Debra Jaliman, MD on February 25, 2023

These red welts usually itch. They can be a sign of an allergic reaction, but stress or an illness can cause them, too. A hive will usually go away within a day, but a new one could pop up in its place. You may only get a few, or you could have a bunch that connect and spread across your body. If they get worse or don’t go away, see your doctor for treatment. If you have trouble breathing or swallowing, get medical help ASAP.

This prickly red rash, which may be bumpy and is usually itchy, happens in hot, humid weather. It tends to show up in places where your skin rubs together, like your armpits and groin. It’s common in babies but can also happen to adults who get sweaty and overheated. It usually goes away on its own in 3-4 days. If it doesn’t, or if it starts to swell or ooze, call your doctor.

This happens when your skin reacts to something it touches. Sometimes it’s an allergic reaction (such as to poison ivy), and sometimes it’s irritation (from perfumes in soap, for example). Contact dermatitis can be a rash, hives, dry skin, or blisters. Your skin can turn thick or flaky, and it may darken or crack. Sometimes it takes time to figure out what’s caused it. Work with a dermatologist, especially if it gets worse.

There are a few types of this disease, but the most common, plaque psoriasis, shows up as raised red patches with a scaly layer of dead skin cells on top. You’ll usually see it on your scalp, knees, elbows, and lower back, but the blotches can appear anywhere on the body. Most people first notice it between the ages of 15 and 35, but the disease can crop up at any time.

The condition causes patches of very dry, itchy skin. Over time, these areas can thicken and turn lighter or darker than the rest of your body. Most people who have eczema first get it before age 5, and about half will outgrow it by the time they’re adults. But it’s not uncommon for adults to start having symptoms.

If you notice blotches or flushing across your cheeks, nose, chin, or forehead, you might have this skin condition. Sometimes, small pimple-like bumps form and blood vessels get more visible. Usually, it starts after age 30, then gets redder and more constant. Many things can trigger rosacea or make it worse, including drinking alcohol, eating spicy foods, stress, and menopause. There’s no cure, but treatments can control the symptoms.

This painful rash with blisters usually shows up as a single stripe on one side of the body. (You might have tingling or itching a few days before you see it.) It’s caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox — the virus stays in your body and, even decades later, can flare up and cause shingles. It’s most common in people over 60. It should clear up in 2-4 weeks, but see your doctor to get medicine to prevent lasting nerve pain.

Also called broken capillaries, these are tiny blood vessels, located close to the surface of the skin, that get larger and more visible. The result is blotchiness and uneven skin tone on areas like the legs and face. Spider veins have many causes and are twice as common in women.  They’re not harmful, but you can have them treated if you don’t like how they look.

These brown or gray-brown patches on the face come from sun exposure, hormone changes, or both. Melasma is much more common in women — pregnancy or birth control pills are common triggers. The patches usually show up on the forehead, upper lip, cheeks, chin, and nose. They can fade on their own after pregnancy or once you stop taking the pill, but treatments can help, too. A broad-spectrum sunscreen and strict sun avoidance will keep them from getting darker.

With this condition, patches of your skin lose color and appear lighter. Sometimes it happens on only a few parts of the body, but vitiligo can cover large areas (even the hair, eyes, and inside of the mouth). It happens when the cells that give skin and hair their color, called melanocytes, die. Vitiligo affects men and women of all races. A few different treatments may restore your skin.

This fungal infection, which is especially common in tropical climates, makes white, pink, red, or brown spots form on the skin. They can show up anywhere on the body, and sometimes they’re dry, scaly, and itchy. Tinea versicolor is most common in teens and young adults with oily skin. A doctor can prescribe medicine, cleansers, or pills to treat it.

When you drink, especially if you have one too many, your face can flush and look blotchy. And if you have a hangover the next day, the dehydration will make any redness worse. If your skin gets very red when you imbibe, you may have alcohol flush syndrome, which is caused by an enzyme problem (it’s common in people of East Asian descent). Or you could have rosacea, and alcohol triggers your symptoms.

Whether it’s with a chemical peel or a scrub, exfoliation removes dead skin cells and leaves your skin looking brighter and refreshed. But doing it too often or too aggressively can make your face redder, make skin problems worse, and cause dark spots to show up. Ask a dermatologist about the best way to exfoliate your skin type.

IMAGES PROVIDED BY:

1) Thinkstock

2) Getty

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8) Thinkstock

9) Dermnet

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11) Getty

12) Getty

13) Thinkstock

SOURCES:

National Psoriasis Foundation: “About Psoriasis.”

American Academy of Dermatology: “Psoriasis,” “Atopic dermatitis,” “Hives,” “Contact dermatitis,” “Melasma,” “Vitiligo,” “Tinea versicolor,” “Evaluate before you exfoliate.”

American Academy of Family Physicians: “Heat Rash,” “Exercise-induced Urticaria.”

National Rosacea Society: “All About Rosacea,” “Factors That May Trigger Rosacea Flare-Ups,” “Tips for Controlling Alcohol Flare-Ups.”

CDC: “About Shingles (Herpes Zoster).”

American Osteopathic College of Dermatology: “Spider Veins. ”

Stanford Health Care: “Telangiectasia.”

Alcohol Health & Research World: “Alcohol Hangover: Mechanisms and Mediators.”

International Rosacea Foundation: “Rosacea Symptoms.”

National Institutes of Health: “Alcohol Flush Signals Increased Cancer Risk among East Asians.”

Cleveland Clinic: “Flushing.”

Inflammation & Allergy – Drug Targets: “Brain-Skin Connection: Stress, Inflammation and Skin Aging.”

© 2023 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved. View privacy policy and trust info

Molluscum Contagiosum: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatments

Written by WebMD Editorial Contributors

• What Is Molluscum Contagiosum?
• Skin and Molluscum Contagiosum
• Molluscum Contagiosum Symptoms
• Molluscum Contagiosum Causes
• Molluscum Contagiosum Diagnosis
• Molluscum Contagiosum Treatment
• Molluscum Contagiosum Prevention
• More

Molluscum contagiosum is a common viral skin infection. It most often affects children, but adults with weakened immune systems can get it, too.

Molluscum contagiosum causes either single or multiple raised, pearl-like bumps (papules) on the skin. It’s a chronic infection, so the bumps may last for a few months or a few years. But most cases get better in 6 to 9 months.

Molluscum contagiosum papules commonly appear on the face, trunk, and limbs of children and on the genitals, abdomen, and inner thighs of adults. The condition usually causes bumps that:

• Are generally painless but can itch
• Are small (2 to 5 millimeters in diameter)
• Have a dimple in the center
• Are firm, dome-shaped, and flesh-colored at first
• Become softer with time
• May turn red and drain over time
• Have a central core of white, waxy material

Molluscum contagiosum usually disappears on its own over a period of months to years if you have a healthy immune system. If you have AIDS or other conditions that affect the immune system, molluscum contagiosum can lead to widespread, chronic sores.

Molluscum contagiosum is a common contageous viral skin infection that most often affects children. It causes either single or multiple raised, pearl-like bumps (papules) on the skin. It’s a chronic infection, so the bumps may last for a few months or a few years.

Molluscum contagiosum is caused by the molluscum contagiosum virus. It’s part of the pox virus family. You can spread molluscum contagiosum:

• Through direct contact with an infected person
• By having sexual contact with an infected person
• By rubbing or scratching the bumps

A diagnosis of molluscum contagiosum is based on the way the papule looks. If your doctor isn’t sure, they can confirm the diagnosis with a skin biopsy. They’ll remove a piece of skin to look at more closely. If they’re worried you might have other health problems, they can check for them, too.

Because molluscum contagiosum can go away on its own, you may not need treatment. But the doctor can remove individual bumps by scraping or freezing them. This procedure could leave a scar.

Topical medications (medications you put on your skin), like those used to remove warts, can also help remove the papules.

To prevent molluscum contagiosum, follow these tips:

• Avoid direct skin-to-skin contact with anyone who may have the condition.
• Treat eczema in children.
• Either don’t have sex or have a monogamous sexual relationship with someone who isn’t infected. (Male and female condoms don’t offer full protection. The virus can get to areas the condom doesn’t cover.)

© 2020 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved. View privacy policy and trust info

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symptoms of scabies, fleas, mites and eczema

External parasites in dogs are quite common, as the animal has a natural curiosity and actively explores the environment every time it leaves the house. Skin parasites in dogs cause them a lot of inconvenience and can infect the owner of the animal along the way. Therefore, this page presents parasites in dogs in the photo, which allow you to quickly detect one or another species. Parasites in dogs can cause a wide variety of symptoms, but most often it is itching, changes in the skin and coat. More details about the signs are written in the relevant sections of this page.

Scabies mite and scabies in dogs: signs in the photo and treatment

Red scabies in dogs, also called demodectic or follicular, is perhaps the most common skin disease of dogs. Until recently, it was also the most intractable. The causative agent of red scabies is a worm-like scabies mite in dogs that lives in the hair follicles and in some skin glands. Most of all, young dogs, especially short-haired breeds, suffer from this type of scabies.

The first signs of scabies in dogs are the appearance of bald spots with a slightly reddish skin tone. It usually happens around the eyes, on the elbows. Itching at this stage is slight or absent. But even when it appears, it is not as strong as with subcutaneous scabies.

After a while, the bald areas increase in size and merge into large spots. The skin in these places acquires a copper-red color, which explains the name of the disease. In particularly acute cases, the skin may become gray or bluish. The activity of ticks and itchy places combed by the dog cause inflammation – the skin swells and bursts. Ticks infect exposed areas, forming fetid abscesses in which poisonous microbes develop that poison the dog’s body.

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The disease proceeds very slowly, stretching sometimes for two years or more. If the dog is not properly treated, he usually dies, although there have been cases when a strong dog recovered without any medical help.

Red scabies mites outside the dog’s body die after a few days. Therefore, the room from which the infected animal was removed does not store the infection for a long time.

Scabies can only be accurately identified by examining the scraping under a microscope. But even a microbiological analysis sometimes has to be done several times to find a tick at the primary stage of the disease.

There are quite a few remedies for the treatment of scabies in dogs, they are applied topically, in the form of ointments, solutions, suspensions, etc.

Here are some of them: Benzyl benzoate – available in the form of an ointment of 10% and 20%. Ointment should be lubricated with the affected areas twice with an interval of two days;

Spregal – available as an aerosol. One vial is enough to cure several dogs. This is the only drug that can be used in pregnant bitches.

Since itching in scabies is also caused by an allergic reaction, the doctor may prescribe antiallergic (antihistamine) drugs (suprastin, claritin, etc. ). Look at the dog’s scabies in the photo – it will help identify the parasite by external signs:

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Scabies in a dog: symptoms, how to treat and cure (what medicine to use)

The causative agent of this disease is a tick no more than 0.25 mm long. Adult females penetrate the upper layers of the skin and lay 20 to 40 eggs there. In three months, each pair of ticks can produce up to 1.5 million offspring.

Subcutaneous scabies affects animals of all ages. It is contagious not only for other pets, but also for humans.

Symptoms of scabies in dogs occur when small blisters appear on the bridge of the nose, around the eyes, at the base of the ears, or elsewhere. The liquid released from the bubbles dries up in the form of bran-like scales. They cause severe itching and hair loss in these places, the skin becomes rough and wrinkled.

If left unchecked, the disease can cause gastrointestinal distress and other ailments, and even death in a few months. How to cure mange in a dog is described further on this page, some practical recommendations are presented. It is necessary to select the appropriate medication for scabies in dogs with the help of a veterinarian who will make the correct diagnosis.

Subcutaneous scabies is very similar to dry eczema. It can also be confused with demodectic (red) scabies or ringworm. Subcutaneous scabies mites are much harder to detect than red scabies mites. To get to them, you need to consistently scrape the skin with a sharp blade. They can only be seen under a microscope or with a strong magnifying glass.

How to treat scabies in dogs with a guarantee of obtaining a high degree of effectiveness? Until a few years ago, scabies was treated with drugs that required repeated applications. Today, dermatologists treat scabies with spregal. A bottle of medicine costs about $20. A single treatment of the skin of a sick animal is sufficient.

Ear scabies in dogs and its treatment

Ear scabies in dogs occurs when mites parasitize, which in appearance resemble scabies mites, but are larger and with longer limbs. They are white and move slowly. They can be seen with the naked eye.

Ticks live deep in the canal that runs from the outer ear to the eardrum. Here they gnaw through the skin and feed on tissue fluid. The ear canal becomes clogged with mites and earwax, which causes severe itching in the dog. Trying to relieve him, she furiously scratches her ear and shakes her head. Sometimes the dog will keep its head tilted to one side, and when severely infested will run in circles or show other signs of nervousness.

For the treatment of ear mange in dogs, first of all, it is necessary to carefully remove the wax accumulated there, together with the mites stuck in it, from the ears. In order not to accidentally injure the dog, you need to tie it up or ask someone to hold it tightly.

The sulfur glands are supposed to protect the ear from infection and inflammation, so they have to produce more sulfur if the ear is cleaned regularly. Sometimes the cause of increased secretion is associated with individual characteristics, but even in these cases, you need to clean your ears every few months and very carefully, and best of all at the veterinarian.

Cleaning procedure is as follows: make a swab of gauze and cotton and dipping it in warm oil, wipe the inside of the ear. If the ear is very dirty, treat it with a 3% hydrogen peroxide solution.

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To clean the ear canal, use a thin wooden stick wrapped in cotton wool, which is dipped in boric or salicylic alcohol. It is allowed to clean only the auricle, but in no case go deep into the ear.

The hardest part is choosing the right medicine. Descriptions of various drugs are almost always accompanied by recommendations to consult a veterinarian, since not all drugs are equally suitable for different breeds of dogs.

In the acute stage of otitis, anti-inflammatory drops, suspensions, powders, antibiotics are used. At the initial stages of the disease (before otitis), as well as at the end of treatment, drops are used – pyrethroids of different generations. They contain an insecticide, usually pyrethrin, that kills ear mites. Drops can cure otodectosis at any stage of the disease. First, they treat the dog’s ears 2 times a day for about 10 days, then 1 time per week for another 10 weeks. A month after the last treatment, it is advisable to show the animal to the doctor to determine whether the ticks have been completely destroyed or not.

Ear Mite drops are very effective against ear mites. They are used for many pets (cats, dogs, rabbits), contain aloe vera oil for softening. The medicine cures ear mites in 2-4 weeks. There are other drugs: decta, otovedam, anandin plus, cypam, fipronil, dana, demos, otibiovin, Bars, deternol or otokan, TAP-85, hexalin, hexatalp, nicochloran, phenothiazine, dicresyl, etc.

effective acaricidal ointments, of which the most effective are Wilkinson’s, Kon’kov’s, acarabor, sulfuric and sulfur-tar ointments. Apply drops and ointments strictly according to the instructions. Most of the old generation preparations contain insecticides that do not affect the eggs of mites, so the preparations must be used during the entire cycle of their reproduction, that is, more than three weeks.

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Dog ticks in dogs: photo and treatment

The way of life of different types of blood-sucking ticks is similar in many respects. They all need the blood of animals to reproduce. The female, having sucked blood, falls off the animal and only then lays eggs. All common blood-sucking mites in dogs go through four stages: egg, larva, nymph, and adult.

The female mite lays 3000-6000 eggs on the ground. Six-legged larvae (seed mites) are hatched from them, which cling to field mice or other small rodents. After a few days, having sucked blood, they fall to the ground, shed their skin and appear already with eight legs. This is the nymph stage. Then they cling to small rodents again, fill with blood, after 3-10 days they fall to the ground, shed their skin, and this time they appear as adults.

Mating in ticks occurs when the female and male, clinging to the dog, suck on its blood. After 5-13 days, the female falls to the ground, lays eggs and dies. The only food for ticks is the blood of mammals. Larvae and nymphs can live without food for a year, and adults for two years. Next, you can see a dog tick in a photo that illustrates sexually mature individuals:

Brown dog ticks cause the most trouble, as they can live in houses and in dog kennels, feeding exclusively on the blood of dogs. Adult ticks do not bite humans. At some stages, they hide in furniture, in the folds of curtains, baseboards or window frames. To get rid of these ticks, you need not only to treat the dog with the appropriate drug, but also to destroy their nests in the room.

For the treatment of ticks in dogs, use special preparations, daily carefully examine the dog. There is a whole arsenal of acaricides and insecticides. But ticks very quickly adapt to poisons. An anti-tick remedy that was very effective yesterday may not work the next day.

Dog fleas and their photos

Dog fleas not only poison the life of an animal, but can also be carriers of worms. Four types of fleas parasitize the dog: canine, feline, human and sucking. Human fleas can live on dogs, cats, and pigs. Felines prefer cats, but if they are not around, they are content with dogs. The dog flea prefers dogs, but will not miss the opportunity to bite a person. Adhering fleas also live on birds and can bite humans.

Female fleas produce large numbers of eggs that fall on the ground, floor, upholstery. After a few days, they hatch into worm-like larvae, which after two weeks or more (depending on temperature and humidity) reach maturity and spin around themselves cocoons the size of wheat grains.

Fleas appear from these cocoons after another week or several months, and they try to crawl as far as possible to a height of 30 cm from the ground, floor, etc. Here they wait for a passing dog or other warm-blooded animal to jump on it and settle in their new “home”.

See what fleas look like on dogs in the photo in order to be able to recognize parasites in time:

Sticking fleas, unlike the other three species, do not jump from place to place, but choose their permanent home. In dogs, they usually settle on the ears, and often hundreds of these parasites are fringed in dog ears.

Weeping, wet and dry eczema in dogs: causes and photos of symptoms

Eczema in dogs, or summer scabies, is a fairly common skin disease among animals, including canines. In terms of symptoms, it is similar to tick-borne scabies and ringworm. To exclude false diagnoses, it is necessary first of all to pass a sample for analysis.

Veterinarians are familiar with two forms of eczema: acute (wet, wet) and chronic (dry). Any of them usually appears in the summer.

Wet eczema in dogs, like all acute forms, develops transiently. Severe reddening of the skin is manifested, the dog has itching, watery bubbles form on the skin. Then the hair begins to fall out, the skin takes on a glossy-wet look. Most often, the acute form of eczema occurs in long-haired dogs.

Dry eczema in dogs does not make itself felt immediately, so if any inflammation, rash, causeless hair loss, peeling, accompanied by severe itching, you should immediately go to the doctor. This form of eczema is more common in rough-haired breeds.

Weeping eczema appears in dogs, usually at the base of the tail, along the back and on the shoulder blades. The acute form is easily recognized by brownish discharge around the ear canal and between the toes.

Causes of eczema in dogs may include: local irritation of the dog’s skin (by dirt or some kind of chemical agent), heat and malnutrition, nervous stress. It is not for nothing that excitable dogs are more likely to get eczema, however, as well as people with nervous disorders or metabolic disorders.

One very common type of eczema is caused by the microscopic fungus Alternaria tenuis, which lives in dead grass and fallen leaves. Like most mushrooms, it loves humid, hot weather.

Eczema is not transmitted from dog to dog or person. If skin problems have passed to another dog, you need to urgently do tests for an infectious skin disease. The following shows eczema in dogs in the photo, which allows you to recognize the symptoms of the disease in an animal in time:

Before you start treating eczema, you need to remove skin irritants, wash the dog, and if eczema is caused by lice or fleas, then destroy them. It often turns out that this is enough to combat eczema.

Treatment should be comprehensive and preferably early. First of all, it is necessary to act on the main cause inside the body. Since the trophic function of the nervous system is always impaired in eczema, it is advisable to use short novocaine blockades or blockades of nodes and sympathetic ganglia at all stages. In the weeping stage, the treatment of eczema is delayed, and it becomes chronic. After treatment, relapses are possible.

At all stages for desensitization, it is advisable to inject a 10-20% sodium thiosulfate solution intravenously, starting with 1-2 ml, adding 1 ml daily. A total of 10 injections are needed.

To normalize trophic function and reduce exudation in the first stages before the formation of pustules, they inject with a 0.25% solution of novocaine with hydrocortisone (1 ml of hydrocortisone per 10 ml of novocaine solution), and in more advanced forms, it is recommended to add 1-2 ml of ampouled gentamicin. The solution is injected into several places of healthy skin so that it penetrates under the skin affected by eczema.

Ringworm in dogs: photo and treatment

Ringworm in dogs combines three contagious diseases – trichophytosis, microsporia and scab, the causative agents of which are pathogenic dermatophyte fungi. These diseases have similar symptoms and treatments. They are also dangerous for people.

In dogs, ringworm begins as small patches, usually round or oval, covered with a gray or tan crust. Almost all hair falls out of these affected areas. Spots appear most often on the muzzle, head or paws, but may be in other places. With the development of the disease, bald spots increase. The spots disappear after a while, but appear in a different place. When a dog scrapes off the crust to relieve itching, a bleeding wound is left in the area. Sometimes itching is slight or absent. Check out the photos of ringworm in dogs that show the symptoms of this parasitic disease:

For accurate diagnosis, doctors examine hair from affected areas under a microscope. With microsporia, fluorescent diagnostics is carried out using a mercury-quartz lamp with a Wood filter. Such an analysis is necessary, since ringworm is caused by several types of fungi, and treatment is prescribed depending on their type. Moreover, the bald patches that appear, which you yourself can diagnose as lichen, in 20-30% of cases turn out to be symptoms of other diseases. They can be signs of vitamin deficiency or a weakened body.

Based on the results of the examination of the animal, the doctor will prescribe a treatment regimen, which will be based on the following measures (one or more): the use of vaccines for preventive and therapeutic purposes; the appointment of specific antifungal drugs; taking immunomodulators; local treatment of affected areas of the skin with antiseptics.

When treating ringworm in dogs, it is very important to observe personal safety measures: collect and burn torn crusts and hair and disinfect the room and care items.

Pimples are the result of inflammation of the hair follicles or sebaceous glands. In dogs, pimples often appear under the collar, where dirt with germs is rubbed into the skin. A boil or carbuncle may occur at the site of the pimple.

A mature pimple is opened, the pus is washed off and the wound is moistened with some non-irritating antiseptic such as hydrogen peroxide. Ichthyol ointment, if rubbed vigorously into a nascent pimple, can kill germs from the inside and the pimple will disappear.

Lice in dogs: photo and treatment (how to get rid of parasites)

Three kinds of lice parasitize the dog. Two of them are biting, feeding on dandruff and other skin secretions. The third type is sucking, feeding on blood. Except for the way they feed, they are almost the same in everything, although the biting lice have a shorter head and they behave more actively.

Look at the lice in dogs in the photo to be able to identify these parasites:

Unlike fleas and blood-sucking ticks, lice in dogs can spend their entire lives on their “owner”. Females lay eggs (nits) on his hair or fur. After five days, the young hatch from the eggs, reaching maturity in 1-3 weeks.

Lice are known to irritate the skin, causing animals to bite and itch. And although lice do not reproduce outside the body of a person or animal, they can remain alive for another five days.

Before removing lice from a dog, it is necessary to consult a veterinarian who will tell you which remedy is most effective. Lice can be killed with several insecticides, but most of them do not kill nits. Therefore, the treatment should be repeated after 12 days.

Treating dog lice is relatively simple and similar to treating fleas. Most drugs that kill fleas also kill lice.

Effective aerosol “Bolfo”, which is used to combat fleas, ixodid ticks, lice and lice in dogs and cats. They are sprayed on the animal against the coat for a few seconds until it is slightly moistened. It should also be used for processing bedding, care items.

Remember: only a veterinarian can make a diagnosis! Some dog breeders cause considerable harm to pets, easily making diagnoses and choosing the “right” remedies. Such diagnoses most often turn out to be erroneous, and the remedies are useless or even harmful.

5 most disgusting human parasites

Education

August 8, 2022

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

1. Loa loa

Loa loa in a blood sample. Image: Dr Graham Beards / Wikimedia Commons

Where it lives: in West and Central Africa, in particular – in the Congo, Gabon, Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Nigeria and northern Angola.

Let’s start right away with something as appetizing as possible. Loa-loa is a nematode worm up to 70 mm long and 0.5 mm thick. This parasite lives in the subcutaneous adipose tissue of its hosts, and is also very fond of the eye protein. Loa-loa also parasitizes in the bodies of baboons, monkeys and some rodents. It is carried by horseflies with bites.

The worm forms around itself specific swellings and tumors on the host’s skin – sometimes they reach the size of a chicken egg. It also causes severe conjunctivitis.

If the loa loa is large enough, you can see how it moves and squirms in the eye.

The worm is removed both surgically and with special anthelmintic preparations. And remember that if you do not rush to take medications and go to the doctor, loa loa can live up to 17 years in the human body.

Prevention: do not live in the rainforests of West or Central Africa. Well, or at least not visit them during the rainy season, when horseflies and mangrove flies are especially rampant. Do not burn fires, because these insects are attracted to smoke.

2. Negleria Fowler

Life stages of the parasite. Image: CDC/Wikimedia Commons

Where: lives in dirty warm waters around the world, especially in hot springs and reservoirs near power plants and factories. Negleria fowlera was first discovered in Australia, then came to the United States, as well as to Belgium, England, New Zealand, India and Mexico.

This parasitic protozoan also bears the apt name “brain-eating amoeba”. The unicellular enters the body through the nose along with water when bathing. Then it, moving along the olfactory nerves, enters directly into the brain, where it begins to actively multiply, populating all its departments.

Approximately one week after infection, the person experiences symptoms such as fever, headache and nausea, and it becomes difficult to move their head. As the infection progresses, inattention, incoordination, seizures, and hallucinations develop. It ends in coma and death.

This disease is called primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, or non-gleriasis.

The disease is almost always fatal. About seven cases are known around the world when the infected survived and healed without neurological damage – why this is so is still unclear. There are drugs for Fowler’s negleria, but they mostly only slow down the course of the infection.

Prevention: do not swim in dirty water. And if you still really want to, first put on a scuba gear and an insulated mask with air supply from a cylinder.

3. Trichinella

Animal tissue infected with Trichinella. Image: TheMrGrove/Wikimedia Commons

Location: Worldwide where pigs or carnivores are consumed, especially in China where 10,000 people are infected each year and about 200 die. They mainly prefer omnivorous pigs, as well as foxes, wolves, bears, skunks, raccoons, rats and other small mammals.

Trichinella infection is fatal and is called trichinosis. People get it by eating infected meat, most often pork, but sometimes some exotics like bear meat.

For example, the famous Swedish polar explorer Salomon Andre became infected and died in 1897 after tasting the taste of a polar bear.

Once in the human body with food, males and females of Trichinella begin to multiply in the small intestine. After fertilization, the former die, and the latter produce larvae – this process can continue up to 6 weeks in a row.

Juveniles penetrate the intestinal mucosa into the blood vessels and spread throughout the body. They settle in the muscles, forming calcified capsules around them, and live there for many years, causing fever, chills, coughing, severe pain throughout the body, in the head, muscles and joints.

If the parasite enters the central nervous system, respiratory tract, or vital organs such as the heart, it will gradually kill the host.

Naturally, surgical excision of all the worms, given that they can fill up to 15 thousand per 1 kilogram of muscle tissue, is basically impossible. The reproduction and growth of larvae is suppressed with special preparations, but there is still no complete treatment for trichinosis.

Prevention: Eat the meat of pigs that have been kept in clean pens with concrete floors and not free range. Cook it thoroughly at a temperature of at least 74 °C. Do not eat wild animals without thoroughly testing them for worms.

4. Gadflies

Larvae of the gadfly of the species Gasterophilus intestinalis. Image: Kalumet / Wikimedia Commons

Where they live: worldwide, except polar latitudes.

Even those flies that periodically come to you from the veranda can reward you with many unpleasant diseases – for example, diphtheria and tuberculosis. In addition, they carry eggs of various worms and cysts of parasitic protozoa. And that’s not to mention those tropical tse-tse cuties who can infect with sleeping sickness.

But on our long-suffering planet, there are also much more severe flies that simply amaze the imagination with their disgusting ways to procreate.

So, different types of gadflies are able to lay eggs under human skin so that the larvae feed on the tissues of the host. In adulthood, these guys do not have a mouth apparatus. They fatten up in their youth, crawling under the epidermis and in the mucous membranes of their victims, creating terrible tumors resembling large eels.

And sometimes, when the owner accidentally swallows the eggs of gadflies, they can grow in his intestines and in other internal organs, where they will be carried by the bloodstream. Sometimes the larvae destroy tissue to the bone, causing severe pain, necrosis and gangrene.

In addition to gadflies, wolfart flies are engaged in such bullying – in general, these flies can lay hundreds and a half eggs at a time on the mucous membranes of the victim. For example, in the nose and mouth.

Prevention. Cleanliness and meticulous hygiene will reduce the likelihood of infestation with fly larvae to almost zero. Install mosquito nets and insect curtains in living areas, use fly traps, and do not leave food unattended in the open air. If you go to nature in places where gadflies are found, wear tight clothes.

5. Tapeworms

Head of a porcine tapeworm at 40x magnification. Image: Rjgalindo / Wikimedia Commons

Location: around the world wherever their owners wander.

There are more than 6,000 species of these parasites and they affect almost all vertebrates. The most famous of them that live in humans are pork and bovine tapeworm, tapeworm, echinococcus and alveolococcus. The latter got its name because it parasitizes in the lungs.

Basically, tapeworms settle in the intestines: they are fixed there with their hooks and suckers on the head and grow a long body – a real egg factory. The size of these disgusting creatures is impressive.

The same bovine tapeworm, parasitizing in humans, can grow up to 20 meters, and whale tapeworm – these, fortunately, do not contact people – can reach up to 40.

Most tapeworms consist of segments, like chain links. Their segments periodically fall off the tail, going on a free journey to spread eggs and larvae along with feces.

In addition, worms are hermaphrodites that fertilize themselves, so even a single individual can reproduce extremely efficiently. For example, a bovine tapeworm produces 600 million eggs a year, and over a lifetime (18-20 years) – under 11 billion.

If you think that there can be nothing more terrible than a twenty-meter monster that sticks to the inner wall of the intestine and feeds on its contents, then you are mistaken.

If the larva of the worm with the bloodstream does not get into the intestines, but somewhere else – into the muscles, skin, eyes, heart, brain – it will quickly realize that there is nothing to catch. And eventually pupate, creating a cyst. The calculation is simple: when the host dies, someone will eat it, and then the worm will enter the stomach of the next host.

Especially severe tapeworms, such as echinococci, can form cysts the size of a baby’s head, in which many individuals live at once. Having settled in the brain, lung, liver and kidneys, they are quite capable of completely destroying the affected organ and causing necrosis with a fatal result for the carrier.