Scraping for enterobiasis

Analyzes of feces and urine are basic and are carried out even in the district clinic free of charge. For adults, inspections are less frequent, but children are observed with increased frequency. Therefore, at least for preventive purposes, only once, a child is taken scraping for enterobiasis. What is it, how is it carried out? In which case can a doctor give an appointment for analysis not for a general check, but for specific suspicions of a disease?

Why do I need analysis on enterobiosis?

Helminths - parasites that can exist in humans and animals, most often occur in children, because they do not always follow all the rules of hygiene. Playing with a pet or a puppy met on the street, messing around in the public sandbox, then grabbing a sandwich with dirty hands is a normal practice for a child. Complete isolation from bacteria is also not the best option, but because of such childish carelessness, the appearance of worms in preschool and younger school age does not surprise doctors any more. The analysis on enterobiosis allows you to determine the presence (or absence) in the children's body of one of the types of these parasites - pinworms or eggplants.

• Ostrits characterizes high survivability: they not only successfully pass from the body into the body through direct contact, but also are able to live in tap water for about 20 days, and in the environment - up to 25. Not all disinfectants can destroy them, so often pinworms (often their eggs) get into the children's body, even through the neck of a washed bottle.
• The main risk group is children under 14 years old, the lower bar depends on the individual characteristics of the organism and the child’s activity in society. Most often, children aged 3-6 years old, who have a weak immunity, fall into an environment where sanitary conditions are not observed.

With the prophylactic purpose scraping on enterobiosis in children is taken annually until the child is 14 years old, but the doctor can give a direct appointment if there are complaints about night itching in the anus, nausea and vomiting, not associated with meals, frequent bowel pain. Sometimes there is a particularly significant and characteristic symptom - granulomas, in which helminth eggs and their remains are collected. At the same time, between the primary itch, which occurs during the deposition of larvae, and pains in the intestine, which indicate that adults are attached to its walls, it takes about 10-14 days.

How much do scraping on enterobiosis, what to expect from him?

Taking an analysis takes a few minutes, the study of the material itself is carried out in 24 hours. On the morning of the next day, the laboratory already knows the result of the test, since deciphering by laboratory technicians takes no more than an hour. The answer that a person who wants to learn about the state of his child’s body receives is very brief: either the presence of pinworms is confirmed or denied.

It should be borne in mind that the initial examination for enterobiasis has a 50/50 accuracy, the result may be erroneous. If there is no clear certainty in the diagnosis of the doctor, you can prescribe 2 more checks - the 3rd scraping already gives the result with a 90% probability, and the 5th with a 99%.

Scraping Algorithm for Enterobiasis

It is possible to complete the procedure both at a public clinic, where the waiting period for their turn usually does not exceed several days, or in a private institution. The approximate cost of analysis for a child will be 200-400 rubles. The final result is influenced by the ability of the doctor to properly take a scraping and “read” it, as well as the patient's initial preparation. The analysis is done in the morning, the child should not visit the toilet, take a shower, wash out until this point. It is important for the physician to see the state of the genital organs as they are after the night, since Helminth activity is manifested precisely in the dark. This is especially true for the appearance of granulomas.

• There is also a contraindication to taking scrapings - the analysis should be canceled or moved to a later date if the skin around the anus is damaged.

For the most reliable results, the analysis is carried out in the laboratory: a standard collection of feces in a jar, which doctors ask at some clinics, does not give any information about the degree of activity and the number of helminths. Their eggs to detect in the stool is almost impossible.

So, how do children take scrapings for enterobiasis? The child is placed on the couch left side, lowering the underwear to the knee. Wearing gloves, the doctor spreads the buttocks with his fingers to open access to the preanal area. Then there are 3 possible options:

1. Simplest. The cotton swab is treated with either distilled water or saline. In rare cases, a specialist uses glycerin. The tool must be held several times on the outer folds of the anus, the sample is removed in a flask for further study.
2. More common: the doctor takes a glass spatula to use it to perform the same actions around the anus. The material is removed on a glass plate, transferred to the laboratory for study.
3. Sometimes the oldest method is used: an adhesive tape is fixed at the anal passage, smoothed with a finger, pressing it well. After that, remove the wooden stick, re-stick on a glass plate, so as to move the resulting material.

All 3 methods are equally reliable, since the general algorithm of actions is the same - only the tool that analyzes is changed. Additionally, adult parasites can be removed from the perianal area (if they have gone outside), after which they are placed in an alcohol solution of high concentration (75%) and given together with the scraping material for analysis.

These same manipulations can be carried out at home, but the result should be in the hands of a specialist (not a doctor, but in a laboratory) in no more than 2 hours, otherwise the degree of its reliability will decrease significantly.

In conclusion, it is worth recalling that after the illness (if the analysis confirmed the presence of helminths and they were eliminated), it is necessary to take care of protection against re-infection. In addition, it is required to restore the intestinal microflora, and after 14 days to pass a repeated analysis to confirm the purity of the body.