Strongyloides stercoralis

Strongyloides stercoralis is a minute nematode worm, pin worm, that causes strongyloidiasis, a neglected tropical disease that affects humans.

Severe strongyloidiasis is potentially fatal symptoms of include

Insidious and occasionally abrupt onset
Nausea, vomiting, and severe abdominal pain
Diarrhea, occasionally bloody
Cough, hemoptysis, dyspnea, and wheezing
Stiff neck, headache, and confusion (if CNS involvement)
Rash
Fever, chills

Severe strongyloidiasis can occur many decades after the initial infection occurs when patients become immunosuppressed as a result of other factors such as

HIV
lepromatous leprosy
aplastic anemia
malnutrition
tuberculosis

Species detail

Whilst worms are very small, infected people can have several thousands inside their intestine, and unlucky individuals can have even more widely dispersed throughout major organs of the body.

Distribution

Discover the extent to which strongyloidiasis is spread throughout the world and why better methods for diagnosing the disease are needed.
Biology

Learn about the remarkable lifecycle of Strongyloides which can result in female worms developing into male worms.
Disease

Find out how Strongyloides stercoralis infects and affects humans.

Global distribution

A map showing the worldwide distribution of human strongyloidiasis. © www.praxis-heinke.de/serv02.htm

Images

The rhabditiform larvae form of the Strongyloides stercoralisthis parasite. This is the form of the parasite seen in the stools of infected patients. © R Stothard